Khawaja will be a standby for Ponting
December 21st, 2010 - 2:52 pm ICT by IANSSydney, Dec 21 (IANS) Cricket Australia (CA) Tuesday asked New South Wales batsman Usman Khawaja as a standby player for the fourth Ashes Test, if Australian captain Ricky Ponting doesn’t recover from a fractured finger.Chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch said Ponting will be fit in time for the Test, adding that Khawaja’s selection is only precautionary.
“While the NSP (National Selection Panel) are confident Ricky Ponting will be available for the Boxing Day Test, through an abundance of caution we have named Usman Khawaja as the standby player,” Hilditch said in a statement.
Khawaja will join the Australian squad when it gathers in Melbourne Wednesday. The 24-year-old is currently playing in the Blues’ Sheffield Shield match against Queensland at Blacktown.
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- Injured Ponting out of fifth Ashes Test - Dec 30, 2010
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Tags: abundance of caution, australian captain, blacktown, boxing day, boxing day test, captain ricky ponting, cricket australia, fourth ashes test, fractured finger, hilditch, match, melbourne, national selection, new south wales, queensland, ricky, selection panel, selectors, sheffield shield, sydney