On Monday, December 29, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) made it public that the main fast bowler Gus Atkinson has been excluded from the ongoing Ashes 2025-26 series.
Gus Atkinson Veteran fastie Gus Atkinson has to sit out the fifth Test due to a hamstring injury he has sustained during the fourth Test, which was won by the British side at the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in just 2 days of play.
Official Update about Gus Atkinson from ECB
In the statement released regarding Gus Atkinson, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) informed that X-rays showed a hamstring injury.
“England Men’s seamer Gus Atkinson is out for the rest of the Ashes tour after scans confirmed that he has a left hamstring injury.
“ The bowler from Surrey left the ground after delivering five balls of the Australian second innings during England’s win at the MCG in the fourth Test.
“ The England and Wales Cricket Board has announced that it would not recruit anyone to replace the player for the fifth Test, which is scheduled to start in Sydney on January 4,” the announcement by ECB said.
Suffering on the second morning in Melbourne, Atkinson was undoubtedly pulled out of the Ashes series, which was to be concluded in Sydney, as the scans clearly revealed his injury in the left leg.
Atkinson was first included in a strong four-member pace cartel for the very first Test in Perth, where he along with Carse, Mark Wood and Jofra Archer were all very fast bowlers and thought they could also shake Australia.
Wood could play only one Test, suffering pain after the two-day defeat in Perth, as he had already undergone surgery on his left knee early this year.
Archer was subsequently ruled out after the third Test in Adelaide, which was a particularly frustrating blow for England because he showed the best form of his whole series in that match with a first-innings five-wicket haul.
Now Atkinson becomes the third one to be injured, after being sent back from Adelaide and then again getting to Melbourne as Archer’s replacement.
His innings in the entire tour is of six wickets at 47.33, the only major moments being the dismal of Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne in the fourth inning at Brisbane.