'Sorry sight': Australia hit by injury blow with Nathan Lyon sent for scans with hamstring issue
Updated . First published at
ADELAIDE: Australia's Ashes celebrations have been tempered by a significant injury blow to Nathan Lyon, after the veteran off-spinner hobbled from the field after fielding a ball on the boundary.
Cricket Australia has confirmed that Lyon suffered a hamstring injury during the final session, ruling him out of the remainder of the Test.
Lyon dived down at fine leg following a Jamie Smith pull shot off Cameron Green and managed to stop the four, but pulled up lame.
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Nathan Lyon of Australia leaves the field. Getty
The 38-year-old grabbed at his hamstring as he got to his feet before limping off the field to be attended to by medical staff.
Cricket Australia subsequently released a statement, confirming the veteran off-spinner was being assessed by medical staff in the dressing rooms.
"This is a sorry sight for Australia and more so [for] Nathan Lyon. Perhaps a pivotal moment in what could happen today," Adam Gilchrist said in commentary for Fox Cricket.
"This is a bad image as he realised what had happened."
As Will Jacks and Jamie Smith dug in to frustrate the hosts and Lyon out of action, Australia was left a man down just as England's middle-order resistance began to mount.
Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head took over the spin duties in Lyon's absence, bridging the gap until Australia opted for the new ball.
While cameras captured Lyon being whisked to a nearby hospital for scans, he made a gritty return to the Adelaide Oval on crutches, arriving just in time to join his teammates' Ashes-clinching celebrations.
But while Australia celebrated, the mood was far more sombre for Lyon.
Labuschagne, who was first on the scene on the boundary, revealed Lyon's immediate devastation.
"I was down here on the boundary when it happened," he told Fox Cricket after the match.
"I walked over to him, and he just said, 'I think I've done my hammy.'
"I just patted him on the back, didn't really have much for him there.
"He'll be in a world of emotion today, he'll be disappointed, but also really happy with what he was able to do for the team this game to win the Ashes for us.
Pat Cummins embraces Nathan Lyon after securing victory in the third Test at the Adelaide Oval. Gareth Copley via Getty Images
"Without Nathan, I don't think we get the win.
"I feel for him."
The injury mirrored the calf strain Lyon suffered at Lord's during the 2023 Ashes.
On that occasion, Australia's inability to take wickets without their strike spinner proved fatal, as the tourists failed to record another victory for the remainder of the series.
Lyon's three-wicket blitz on Saturday afternoon decimated England's middle order, effectively paving the way for Australia's series-clinching triumph in Adelaide.
