Australia's emerging pace sensation Spencer Johnson has been ruled out of the team's upcoming white-ball tour of the United Kingdom as a result of a side strain. Johnson got injured while playing for Oval Invincibles in the ongoing edition of the men's Hundred. Cricket Australia (CA) has announced Sean Abbott as Johnson's replacement for the white-ball tour.
“(Johnson) will return home for further assessment rehabilitation before the Australian summer,” Cricket Australia said in a statement.
Johnson kicked off the fourth season of the men's Hundred with a lot of promise. He bagged a wicket against Welsh Fire in the season opener while conceding 21 runs but his spell against Northern Superchargers was a treat to watch for the fans.
The left-arm quick delivered 13 dots out of the 20 balls he bowled against Northern Superchargers and gave away just 10 runs. His spell also saw him bag the wicket of Graham Clark.
The upcoming tour of the United Kingdom was going to be an excellent opportunity for the Adelaide-born to display his fast bowling prowess and make a case for himself as a potential replacement for the ageing Mitchell Starc. Notably, Starc has been rested for the T20I series against Scotland and England and will only be seen donning the Australia jersey during the ODI series against the Three Lions.
The 28-year-old has played five T20Is and a solitary ODI for Australia in his brief international career thus far. Johnson's ODI debut came against India at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore on September 24, 2023 whereas he made his T20I debut against the Proteas on August 30, 2023 in Durban.
Australia's T20I squad vs Scotland and England
Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa
