Phil Hughes dropped as Ashes opener
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EXCLUSIVE: Peter Lalor | July 30, 2009
Article from: The Australian
Phil Hughes has been dropped from the Australian side and replaced by Shane Watson for tonight's third Test.
No official announcement has been made, but sources close to the team told The Australian the young batsman has lost his position after just five Tests and been replaced by the all-rounder.
The selectors have hit the panic button after the Hughes in the first three innings of the Test series with scores of 36, 4 and 17.
It is an incredible fall from grace for the 20 year old who starred in his first three Tests and arrived in England with an average of 69 after three stunning games on debut in South Africa, that included two centuries in his second Test.
Selectors were anxious that England’s bowlers, had found a weakness in Hughes ability to deal with the short body-line delivery after he fell to the same ball in tour and Test matches.
The side was anxious to bring in another bowler to help putty up the gaps in the attack caused by Mitchell Johnson’s terrible form.
The fragile Watson can bowl fast and batted well in the tour game after yet another injury setback.
Watson made 84 and 50 in the match against Northampton. Hughes failed in the first innings but scored a lucky 68 in the second.
He has opened for Queensland but is known to be concerned about having to back up and do the job after bowling which will test his fitness.
Hughes will be devastated by the set back and told Fox Sports before the Test that he was happy with the way he plays the short ball.
"I’m fine, that’s how I’ve always played it," the batsman said before receiving the news.
"I’m not going to change things right now, half way through a series and I won’t. There’s things that I will be adapting to, a couple of things I want to change.
"I’m a little bit disappointed about not playing well in the first Tests but I can turn things around."
Hughes admitted that English bowler Andrew Flintoff had been hard to handle.
"I see it as a challenge and it definitely has been, he’s bowling beautifully, I suppose their whole unit has them coming out pretty well and you’ve got to really adapt to that," he said.
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http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25856440-601,00.html
