"His career would have been ruined" - Brad Hogg questions Australian management for sending Nathan Lyon to bat in 2nd Ashes 2023 Test
Former Australian spinner Brad Hogg believes the Australian management shouldn't have sent Nathan Lyon out to bat in their second innings of the second Ashes 2023 Test. Lyon had torn his calf muscle during the first innings and took no further part in the game with the ball.
The veteran offie added crucial 15 runs for the final wicket with Mitchell Starc after coming out to bad. However, he clearly seemed to be struggling to hold his balance.
Brad Hogg feels there was a massive risk of him aggravating his injury. In a video on his YouTube channel, here's what he had to say about Australia sending Nathan Lyon out to bat in that condition:
"The Australian management shouldn't have sent Lyon to bat. Had he got hit or injured his calf further, his career would have been ruined. Cricket Australia would then have been up in arms with the court case with the way they treated Nathan Lyon."
Brad Hogg believes rules should allow injury substitutes
Brad Hogg feels that just like substitutes are allowed for concussion, they should be allowed for injuries that happen during the game as well.
Hogg reckons this would not push the teams to risk their players to continue playing with the injury for the remainder of the Test. By avoiding this, the players would also be able to avoid the possibility of ending up with a career-threatening aggravation of their injury.
On this, the former Australian international stated:
"The ICC and the boards need to look at this and think about whether they can have a substitute for injured players.
"Sometimes these players get injured through no fault of their own. It could be the ground or a pulled muscle because of how long the series has gone. I feel when a player is injured, it is the same (as a concussion) especially when they have an opportunity to help the team move forward.
"You're putting them in situations that could cause more damage down the track to their careers."
Veteran Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin had also brought out a similar point about allowing substitutions for muscular injuries in a video on his YouTube channel.
Nathan Lyon, meanwhile, will travel back home after being ruled out of the remainder of the Ashes 2023 series.