England bowler Chris Wokes bowls during the team training session at the Gabba in Brisbane yesterday. Australia will play England in the first ODI at the Gabba today. (EPA)


Reuters/Brisbane


Australia’s Shane Watson will miss the next three one-day internationals against England after the all-rounder, already rested for the second match in Brisbane, was ruled out of the subsequent contests in Sydney and Perth.
With Watson absent, fellow all-rounder Daniel Christian was recalled to the team for the three matches, his first taste of international cricket since being part of the squad for the World Twenty20 event in Sri Lanka in 2012.
“Given Shane’s workload in the past 12 months, we consider it would be beneficial for him to have a longer break and continue his training program me at home in Sydney ahead of the final ODI and the tour of South Africa,” Australia coach Darren Lehmann said in a Cricket Australia statement yesterday.
After completing a 5-0 whitewash in the Ashes series, Australia won the first one-dayer against England in Melbourne at the weekend and will be out to extend their dominance in the second contest of the five-match series on Friday. The fifth and final match is in Adelaide on January 26.

Struggling Finn welcomes England break

Fast bowler Steven Finn admitted yesterday that he needed a break from cricket after being sent home from England’s tour of Australia to work on his bowling action.
The 24-year-old did not play a part in England’s Ashes whitewash defeat and was subsequently left out of the team that lost by six wickets in the opening one-day international in Melbourne.
Limited-overs coach Ashley Giles announced on Wednesday that Finn would be returning to England and the Middlesex paceman concedes that it has been a frustrating time.
“As the series went on and as we moved into the one-day leg of the tour, it’s clear that there are a couple of technical issues that I need to address,” Finn said in a video posted on the England and Wales Cricket Board’s YouTube channel.
“The decision was made by Ashley and (Middlesex director of cricket) Angus Fraser; a liaison between the two of them and people higher above.
“And going home and working on these aspects of my game would be the best place for me to do it, to get away from cricket for a couple of weeks because, at times, it’s felt like I’ve been banging my head against a brick wall, trying to make it right and trying to prepare to play.
“To take myself out of this environment, a competitive environment, to get myself back to Middlesex and work with people that I’ve worked with for a long time before, I’m really looking forward to it.”
Despite his recent problems, Finn does not believe it will take him long to recover his top form.
“There’s times on this trip where it’s felt like it’s so close to clicking,” he said. “Even as recently as a couple of days ago, bowling in the nets before the Prime Minister’s XI game, I bowled nicely. I bowled with decent pace, I bowled quite consistently, but it’s the infrequency with which that’s happened that’s probably a little bit of the reason for me going home.
“It’s close to clicking and it’s not far away and I actually don’t think it’s going to take too much to get me back to where I want to be.”
He admitted that he was “gutted” to leave the tour but added: “I think it’s best for me that I go home now.”