Hazlewood Injury Update: Major Blow for Australia During Ashes 2025

The Ashes 2025-26 commenced on November 21 in Perth, and Australia managed to have a dominating win. The stage has been set for the clash between Australia and England, one of the greatest rivalry in cricket. The batting, bowling, and fielding are top-notch in all the games. If we see the head-to-head stats, Australia has been dominating the series recently due to some of the strongest players in the team, including captain Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, and many more.

However, the story might change this time since there is an injury scare for Australia ahead of the Ashes 2025. Some of the star players are reportedly injured, which might cause a problem for the home team.

Josh Hazlewood Injury Update

Australia's star bowler Josh Hazlewood sustained an injury during the Sheffield Shield match between New South Wales and Victoria at the SCG. He went off the field on day three but didn't return, raising concerns. After Hazlewood injury, Sean Abbott also went back to the pavilion but didn't return later. However, Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of the first two matches of the Ashes 2025, but reports are coming that he might miss the full series, which will be a big setback for Australia despite their dominating performance.

Both are the best bowlers in the team, and their absence, even for one or two games, could have given England the edge to get past the home team and win the matches. This is an important series since the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle is going on, and Australia is leading the points table with three consecutive wins. Meanwhile, England is still struggling to make their way in the points table. Interestingly, England has never played in the WTC finals despite playing many Test matches in a year. Hence, it will be interesting to see how the Ashes 2025 series goes for both teams.

Pat Cummins Missed First Test Against England

Australia's captain Pat Cummins missed the first Test against England as he was recovering from his lumbar stress injury. This means that England could have taken advantage of the situation and put the hosts on the back foot in the first match, but failed to do so. Cummins has been one of the best test bowler in the world as well as an incredible leader in the past. Not having him around in the series opener looked like a demotivating point for Australia, but it didn't feel like that with the way they played. However, Steve Smith led the team very well in the first Test against England.

Australia had Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, and Scott Boland in the team, who have the match-winning skills. They didn't let the team feel their absence, and Starc showed his class in bowling. However, the management will still keep an eye on players who are busy playing in the Sheffield Shield matches, which include Starc, Lyon, and Boland. However, Smith does have some captaincy skills that might help them win the remaining games in the Ashes 2025.