Ashes: James Anderson, Stuart Broad available for second Test, says England coach Silverwood

Anderson and Broad had missed the first Test and their omission raised many eyebrows as Australia thrashed England in the Ashes opener last week.

“Jimmy will be fit and ready to go for the second Test, as will Stuart. They are available. Certainly, from an experience point of view, with the bowlers we’ve got heaps of experience so I’m happy with that,” ESPNcricinfo quoted Silverwood as saying.

Silverwood informed that both pacers were in the groove of the game and are ready for the pink-ball Test.

“The guys have already been training with the pink ball behind the scenes. And what we have got is a very skilful set of bowlers. We have talent and we still have two of the best up our sleeve as well,” said Silverwood.

The England head coach admitted that Broad was disappointed to miss the first Test.

“Stuart has been great, to be honest. Obviously, he was disappointed not to be playing but he understood that this is a long series,” said Silverwood.

“Everybody will put their hand up to do the hard work out there and he is ready to do that now. We had good conversations with Stuart before any decisions were made and he was 100 per cent on board.

“I’ve not told anyone they are playing yet. We will have some sore bodies from this Test and we’ll make decisions from there,” he added.

Australia and England will lock horns in the second Ashes Test from Thursday.

Hazlewood to miss 2nd Test

Australia pacer Josh Hazlewood will miss the second Ashes Test in Adelaide after a side injury. Australia and England will lock horns in the second Test which gets underway from Thursday.

Hazlewood was injured during Australia’s nine-wicket win against England in Brisbane in the first Test.

“Hazlewood returned to Sydney yesterday afternoon for further assessment and rehabilitation with a decision on his fitness for the Boxing Day Test to be made in due course,” Cricket Australia said in a statement.

Australia take a 14-man squad to Adelaide this (Monday) morning including fast bowlers Michael Neser and Jhye Richardson and leg spinner Mitchell Swepson.

Cricket Australia said selectors will choose a squad for the Melbourne and Sydney Tests following the Adelaide match

Lyon hales Carey

Australian spinner Nathan Lyon, who bagged his 400th Test wicket in Brisbane during the first Test, has lavished praise on wicket-keeper batter Alex Carey following his “incredible” debut in the longest format of the game.

Carey on Saturday created the record for taking most catches on Test debut as picked a total of eight catches in the first Ashes Test against England.

Lyon was not surprised by Carey’s performance as the wicket-keeper batter has played a lot of limited-overs cricket.

“I think it’s been an absolutely incredible debut. I’m not surprised by it. I’ve watched him train in the lead-up and his preparation has been world-class,” ESPNcricinfo quoted Lyon as saying.