Kevin Pietersen might not be able to feature for England in the third test match of the ongoing Ashes series because of the side strain that he picked up while fielding in the second test match at Lord’s.
Because of that injury, Pietersen didn’t take the field in Australia’s second innings.
There is a gap of 10 days between the second and the third test match and the England team management is hopeful that Pietersen will be able to recover in time.
In case Pietersen doesn’t get fit before the third test match, it’s James Taylor who is expected to replace him in the playing XI.
James Taylor had made his test debut last year against South Africa. He performed alright in a couple of test matches that he played, but, despite that, he got dropped for the next series.
But, with consistent performances in the domestic circuit, he is back in contention.
Taylor will also play for Sussex as a guest player in the upcoming practice match against the Australian team.
Talking to the reporters yesterday, the coach of the England test team, Andy Flower said, “We want to thank both Sussex and Nottinghamshire for allowing James to play in the warm up game against Australia. It will be a good opportunity for him to have some match practice as he might be needed for the third test.”
“Kevin’s fitness will be assessed after a few days and then, the decision will be taken whether he will play at Old Trafford or not.”
“He is one of our vital players and we desperately want him to be fit in time. Let’s see what happens.”
The warm up match between Australia and Sussex is going to start from Friday at County Ground, Hove.