Veteran Australian pacer Josh Hazelwood missed out on the entire Ashes series this summer owing to his injured hamstring. However, the injury has not affected his mentality, as he has stuck to the fact that he will continue to play all formats for his national side.
Australia might have been dominating the home Ashes series with a 2-0 advantage, but they have had to sustain multiple blows in the form of injuries. Usman Khawaja and Josh Hazlewood are among the big names in the list.
Hazlewood was first ruled out of the first two Tests, but then it was confirmed that he will miss the entire summer Ashes for Australia. However, credit to Mitchell Starc, who has held his nerve and delivered in every difficult time for Australia. Starc was named the player of the match in the first two games.
Your daily dose of cricket!
“My body still feels as strong as ever” – Josh Hazlewood on playing all three formats
Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of the Ashes after suffering a hamstring injury during a Sheffield Shield game last month; he then suffered another setback when he hurt his Achilles tendon last week, which confirmed his exit.
Despite all, the Aussie speedster is still determined to star for his national side across all formats of international cricket.
“Yeah, absolutely,” he told Sydney’s Daily Telegraph. “My body still feels as strong as ever. It’s just little things here and there that creep in. I’m still determined to play three formats as best I can.
He said that despite fitness and determination, every bowler misses out on a game here and there, and no one can do it all, except when it’s a batter. Every format demands something new and throws a different bit of a challenge.
Josh Hazlewood focused on being back ahead of the T20 World Cup team announcement
Unlike Pat Cummins or Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood has not desired to keep himself away from the game by any means. Starc has already retired from the T20 format on the international level and now focuses only on Tests and ODIs.
However, Hazlewood has kept his dreams alive to feature for Australia in the T20 World Cup, and considering his experience and his great numbers in the subcontinent, even Australia would treasure his return to the side.
“Once you’re injured mid-series or just before a series starts, you’re chasing your tail a lot of the time anyway,” he added.
“I probably could have got back for one or two tests with the hamstring, but then you leave yourself quite vulnerable going into a test match on the back of not much,” Hazlewood confirmed that a comeback amid the Ashes would have halted his T20 World Cup plans.
Australia relish the return of skipper Pat Cummins in Adelaide
On the other hand, Australia, who already have the upper hand with two wins in the Ashes, are celebrating the return of their skipper, Pat Cummins. Cummins, who has been out of action since July 2025, marks his return after being named in the Australian squad for the Adelaide Test.
Josh Hazlewood confirmed that, as a bowler, “it is good to have got some good work under you,” but it is clear that Hazlewood is not making a return to the Australian side anytime before the World Cup, which starts on the 7th of February.
ALSO READ: Ex-RCB coach plots last-minute exit of Mayank Yadav from LSG ahead of IPL Auction
