England were handed a boost ahead of their third Ashes test at Headingley on Thursday after the announcement that Steve Smith would be missing for Australia.
Smith misses out after suffering concussion during the first innings of the second test at Lords, when the 30-year-old was hit in the neck by a 92mph bouncer from Jofra Archer.
Despite the blow to the neck, Smith was allowed to conclude his first innings after passing a concussion test.
Australia coach Justine Langer confirmed the influential player would be absent during the third test after sitting out training on Tuesday.
Smith has scored 142, 144 and 92 in the three innings he has faced so far in the series.
Questions have arisen as to how Smith was allowed to return to the crease after the blow to his neck, with Brain injury charity Headway saying it was “incredibly dangerous” for Smith to resume his innings.
“You need to take an ‘if in doubt’ approach,” said Headway deputy chief executive Luke Griggs.
“With concussion, the vision can be blurred and the brain can be slow at processing information. That leads to delayed reaction times and is just incredibly dangerous.”
sportingwayoflife.com 