Sports04 June, 20262 min read
Ollie Robinson Ruled Out of England’s Second Test vs New Zealand at The Kia Oval
“soreness in his right knee”
“with a knee injury”
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Ollie Robinson ruled out of the second Test with right knee soreness. The Oval hosts the second Test; Stokes and Atkinson unavailable due to nightclub incident probe.
Robinson ruled out
Ollie Robinson was ruled out of England's second Test against New Zealand at The Kia Oval with a knee problem, with England saying he would undergo a scan after feeling "knee soreness" while training at Hove on Friday. England called up uncapped seamer Henry Crocombe as cover, and the ESPNcricinfo report said Robinson would not be risked for the match starting on Wednesday. Robinson’s absence follows captain Ben Stokes and pace bowler Gus Atkinson being made unavailable for Wednesday’s contest after an incident in a London nightclub, leaving England to reshuffle their XI.
“England announced that Robinson would be undergoing a scan after feeling ‘knee soreness’ while training at Hove on Friday.”
ESPNcricinfo said Robinson led the attack at Lord’s on his return to Test cricket after two years out of the side, taking career-best match figures of 7 for 77. The BBC said Robinson will remain with the squad and work towards a possible return in the third Test at Trent Bridge, beginning on 25 June.
Who replaces whom
With Robinson, Stokes, and Atkinson all missing the second Test, the BBC said England will now make at least three changes to their side, and possibly as many as five. The BBC reported that Jofra Archer was almost certain to take one spot after missing the first Test following his stint in the Indian Premier League (IPL), and it said Archer trained with England at The Oval on Sunday. England’s remaining make-up will depend on how they replace all-rounder Stokes, with the BBC outlining options including specialist batters Jordan Cox or James Rew, or an all-round replacement such as leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed.
The BBC also said two of Matthew Fisher and the uncapped Sonny Baker and Henry Crocombe could come into the side, and it noted a less likely composition could include off-spinner Shoaib Bashir alongside three seamers. Radio Royal added that England’s pace attack will likely be spearheaded by the returning Jofra Archer, with Josh Tongue, Matt Fisher and Sonny Baker also available.
Series pressure and timing
The second Test is scheduled at The Kia Oval from June 17-21, and ESPNcricinfo said England are optimistic of a Trent Bridge return for Robinson with the third Test getting underway on June 25. The BBC described Robinson’s absence as a huge personal blow after his comeback in the first Test at Lord’s, where he took seven wickets including three in his first over. England’s wider disruption is tied to the nightclub incident that also affected Stokes and Atkinson, and the BBC said they were made unavailable for Wednesday’s contest at The Oval pending an investigation into their involvement.
Radio Royal said head coach Brendon McCullum will speak to the media on Monday for the first time since the Stokes incident, and it quoted McCullum on developing players through the county system and Lions. New Zealand’s own situation shifted after the sudden retirement of their all-time leading run-scorer Kane Williamson, with the BBC saying Will Young joined up with the tourists’ squad on Sunday as Williamson’s replacement.