Follow UsIn a blow for Australia, left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann could be ruled out of the tour of Sri Lanka due to a thumb injury he suffered during the ongoing Big Bash League (BBL) 2024-25, where he is representing Brisbane Heat.
Kuhnemann was struck by a powerful hit by Matthew Wade as he looked to field the ball off his own bowling. Teammate Marnus Labuschagne acknowledged that it does not look good for the 28-year-old. "I just heard about Matt Kuhnemann, so that's pretty bad," he told AAP.
"Thumb ... it doesn't look great. I really feel for him."
Kuhnemann's absence from the tour could pave the way for Cooper Connolly to make his Test debut. Connolly is having an excellent season in the BBL but has very limited first-class experience and is apparently quite highly rated by Steven Smith - the stand-in captain for the Sri Lanka tour.
Australia already have Nathan Lyon and Todd Murphy as the two frontline spinners. If Kuhnemann were to miss out, Australia have the option of roping in uncapped West Australian offspinner Corey Rocchiccioli, New South Wales legspinner Tanveer Sangha and Queensland's Mitchell Swepson.
Kuhnemann made his Test debut against India in February 2023 and finished with nine wickets in three Tests, including a career-best 5/16. "It's someone I'm close to, and he's grown so much with his bowling, and in Sri Lanka, he's probably one of the first picked over there. I'm really gutted," Labuschagne said.
Kuhnemann and Labuschagne are part of the party who are expected to fly out to Dubai on January 19 (Sunday) for a pre-Test training camp.
The two-match Test series against Sri Lanka will begin on January 29 in Galle. Australia have already qualified for the World Test Championship (WTC) final, where they will take on South Africa at Lord's later this year.