The England No.3 batter, Ollie Pope, has unfortunately been ruled out of the remainder of the Ashes series due to a shoulder injury. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) confirmed that Pope dislocated his right shoulder during the second Test and will require surgery.
Scans conducted in London revealed the extent of the injury, leading to the decision that Pope would miss the rest of the summer campaign and undergo rehabilitation in collaboration with the England and Surrey medical teams, as stated by the ECB in a statement.
“Scans in London on Monday revealed the full extent of the injury, and he will miss the rest of the summer campaign and require surgery. He will work closely with the England and Surrey medical teams regarding his rehabilitation,” the ECB said in a statement on Tuesday (July 4).
The injury occurred while Pope fielded on the first day of the second Test at Lord’s. He made a diving stop to a shot played by Marnus Labuschagne and immediately clutched his shoulder. Pope could not field for the remainder of the innings but did bat in both innings, scoring 42 and 3.
Pope was initially allowed to bat at No.3 in England’s first innings due to the external nature of his injury. However, match officials informed him that he had to field again to be eligible to bat higher than No.7 in England’s second innings. This decision confused the England camp, as expressed by assistant coach Jeetan Patel.
England assistant coach Jeetan Patel said. “It’s a bit confusing. We assumed he was asked to be back out on the field, or we would have to field with 10 men. And that made no sense. He had to go back out there. It was always going to happen. He’s so committed to this team. He was always going to fall on something. And now he’s back off.”
During Australia’s second innings, Pope returned to the field but seemed to struggle, throwing the ball underarm and aggravating his shoulder injury while attempting a sliding stop. Subsequently, he left the field once again.
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England has not yet named a replacement for Pope, who also serves as the team’s vice-captain, for the third Test at Headingley. Dan Lawrence will likely be slotted into the team in Pope’s absence.
Pope’s absence is a significant blow to England, as he is an important member of the batting lineup. The team must adapt and find suitable alternatives to fill the void left by his absence as they aim to regain momentum in the Ashes series.
