Suffering from a stress fracture in her right foot, Tayla Vlaeminck has been ruled out of Australia's squad for the Ashes and ICC Women's Cricket World Cup.
After the scans revealed the navicular injury, a confirmation regarding Vlaeminck's ouster from the Ashes and World Cup squad was provided by Cricket Australia on Sunday.
Tayla's injury prompted Australia to make a forced change as pacer Stella Campbell has been added to the squad ahead of the one-off Ashes Test against England. Making her Test debut in a pink-ball match against India, Campbell is viewed as a bright prospect in Australia's pace battery.
The quick is enjoying an extraordinary form currently as she claimed seven wickets, giving away mere 25 runs in a domestic one-day match. As Campbell is likely to play the Test against England, she would be aiming to maintain her good run with the ball.
"Stella bowled well for us in the Test match against India and provides another fast-bowling option now with Tayla being injured. We will continue to assess conditions over the next couple of days before finalising the team," Australia's national selector Shawn Flegler said as quoted by cricket.com.au.
All-rounder Ashleigh Gardner mentioned about Campbell's recent form and is hoping that she is able to replicate the performance in the upcoming encounter.
"It’s going to be pretty interesting to see what wicket we have for the first day of the Test match. Stella was almost unplayable (in the one-day domestic game) and to have her back into the Test squad is really exciting. Hopefully, if she does play, she can replicate that (form)," Gardner said.
Meanwhile, Lauren Bell has also joined England's squad for the coming Ashes Test. Courtesy of her recent significant contribution with the ball, Bell earned a promotion from the A tour.
Yet to feature in an international game, Bell took 3 for 35 in a warm-up match against England women. Then, she added three wickets to her kitty, conceding 17 runs in the first unofficial T20 against Australia A.
"Lauren bowled really well throughout the English summer and she’s continued that good form over here on Australian wickets. She gives us another option to consider for selection going into the Test match," head coach Lisa Keightley commented on Bell's inclusion ahead of the Ashes Test.