“We don’t think he’s going to miss any cricket”
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The shoulder injury that prevented David Warner from opening the batting for Australia in the first innings of the third Test against South Africa in Adelaide is not serious, according to physiotherapist David Beakley.
Warner, who left the field shortly before South Africa declared on 259/9 to receive medical treatment, will also not be required to undergo surgery and is not expected to be sidelined for any period of time.
Beakley added that Warner’s shoulder problem is a pre-existing issue, but despite this, he is set to feature in the upcoming Chappell-Hadlee series against New Zealand, which will consist of three ODIs that will be held on December 4, 6 and 9 respectively.
“He’s had shoulder pain for probably the last year really,” Australia physiotherapist David Beakley said. “We’ve just been managing that as best we can, with modified throwing at training and avoidance of overloading him when we can. But it’s not going to stop him playing at this point in time. We don’t think he’s going to miss any cricket immediately.
“We don’t think he’ll need surgery at this stage. It’s at the point where we can manage. If that injury to one of those muscles was to progress then he could require surgery.”
Australia head coach Darren Lehmann added: “He’s fine. [He’s] just a bit sore in the shoulder but he’ll be right.”
Warner usually tends to field near mid-off due to the fact he is one of the best and quickest fielders in Australia’s squad. However, it also means that he will be made to retrieve the ball and throw it back on a more consistent basis in comparison to other fielding positions.
When asked if it would be better for Warner to field somewhere else, Beakley said: “We sort of played around with where would be the best position for him to field and ultimately that’s up to Steve [Smith]. But he’s such a good fielder, he’s got speed in the outfield and he supports the bowlers so that’s probably the best position for him to field.
“The catch 22 is he has to throw more from the outfield. But his value in the field is such that it’s probably better having him there.”