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Sheffield Shield: Australian pace ace Jhye Richardson under injury cloud ahead of WA’s clash v South Australia

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Jordan McArdleThe West Australian
Jhye Richardson is under an injury cloud.
Camera IconJhye Richardson is under an injury cloud. Credit: Paul Kane/Getty Images

Mystery surrounds the availability of Australian pace ace Jhye Richardson ahead of WA’s Sheffield Shield clash against Tasmania, starting on Sunday at the WACA Ground.

The whippy right-arm speedster didn’t play in Friday’s Marsh One-Day Cup loss to the Tigers but has been named in an extended 13-player Shield squad.

Richardson hasn’t played since suffering a side strain during a pre-season intra-squad match last month, with vice-captain Ashton Turner revealing he’s also been battling an ankle issue.

If the 25-year-old plays, it will be his first Shield appearance in about two years due to Australian duties and shoulder surgery.

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“I think he’s very close, if not going to play (on Sunday),” Turner said.

“He’s got a couple of niggles, I’m not sure which one it was. He’s got a side issue and an ankle, I don’t know which one was holding him back.”

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Turner, who was a surprise omission from the squad after scoring a maiden List-A century on Friday, hopes to force his way back into the side as WA hunt a first Shield title in 23 seasons.

“I love playing Shield cricket... we’ve made no secret that Shield cricket is a priority for us and we’re going to do everything we can to win that trophy,” he said.

PERTH, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 15: Ashton Turner of Western Australia celebrates his century during the Marsh One Day Cup match between Western Australia and Tasmania at the WACA, on October 15, 2021, in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
Camera IconAshton Turner tonned up on Friday. Credit: Paul Kane/Getty Images

WA will need to make at least one change from their opening-round draw with South Australia in Adelaide with Australian T20 World Cup squad member Josh Inglis out.

Hard-hitting allrounder D’Arcy Short is into the 13.

Turner backed the WA to bounce back from a “train wreck” batting performance on Friday with the likes of Hilton Cartwright, Shaun Marsh and Cam Green in great touch in red-ball cricket after centuries against SA last round.

“We know that Tassie will bring a similar skill set to the Shield game and it will probably be a similar wicket,” Turner said.

“A lot of the batters in the Shield team are going really well at the moment so we’ll take some lessons out of this game but hopefully we’ll see a better performance.”

Australian tearaway Riley Meredith got through Friday’s win with flying colours in his first game since suffering a side strain mid-year.

Meredith took 3-41 from his 10 overs, ripping through WA’s top order with the cheap wickets of Cam Green (5), D’Arcy Short (5) and Sam Whiteman (3) as Tasmania posted a four-wicket win with 37 balls remaining.

He won’t feature in the Shield as his bowling workloads are managed, but was hopeful the Tigers could carry their momentum and confidence into a different format.

“The body is feeling fine but I’m unfortunately not playing in the Shield game because of load management, hopefully I’ll be back for the next one,” Meredith said.

“Anytime you beat WA, they’ve always got a lot of international experience and so many unbelievable players so whatever team they roll out is always good quality.

“It gives you so much confidence going forward, knowing that you can compete with the best teams.”

Meredith was caught up in some pre-match COVID drama alongside teammates Tom Andrews, Jake Doran and Mitch Owen who also flew in directly from Tasmania, not from Adelaide like the rest of the squad.

It meant they were told to leave the ground until WA Police could confirm the quartet hadn’t visited any exposure sites in their home State after a COVID-positive man escaped hotel quarantine in Hobart, causing a one-hour delay to the start time.

“It was a bit of a funny one,” Meredith said.

“I left the hotel, got to the ground, was walking up the stairs to the box there, and I got the palm out from the team manager and the physio, and they said, ‘nah, turn back, you’ve got to get in the car and go home’.

“We spoke to our manager and let him know where we’d been (in Tasmania). And then we just had a little hour to ourselves, which was nice, and then straight back to the ground.”

Squads

WA: Shaun Marsh (captain), Cameron Bancroft, Hilton Cartwright, Cameron Gannon, Cameron Green, Matt Kelly, Lance Morris, Joel Paris, Josh Philippe, Jhye Richardson, Corey Rocchiccioli, D’Arcy Short, Sam Whiteman.

Tasmania: Beau Webster (captain), Gabe Bell, Jake Doran, Jarrod Freeman, Caleb Jewell, Ben McDermott, Lawrence Neil-Smith, Sam Rainbird, Peter Siddle, Jordan Silk, Charlie Wakim, Tim Ward, Mac Wright.

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