Watson knee injury prompts Ashes fears

	Shane Watson pulled up sore after Sunday's training and didn't take part in Monday's session © Associated Press
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Australia's medical staff are nervously awaiting the results of scans on Shane Watson's injured knee, which will sideline him from the opening tour match against Sussex. Though cautiously optimistic - the allrounder will be available for Australia's second practice match against the England Lions, beginning at Worcester on July 1 - the tourists are concerned enough to have begun devising contingency plans in the event Watson's knee is worse than initially thought.

Watson has endured a wretched run of injuries over the years, and this latest setback will do little for the confidence of the team or player ahead of the Ashes. He was a notable absentee from Australia's last two training sessions at Hove, and was ruled out of the game against Sussex, which begins on Wednesday.

Watson has at the very least missed a prime opportunity to impress the selectors in his bid to dislodge Marcus North from the No. 6 Test position, and at worst is facing another early Ashes exit. His last Ashes campaign ended before a ball was bowled - hamstring problems forced him from the squad on the eve of the Brisbane Test - paving the way for Andrew Symonds to make his Test return.

Watson was struck down with back stress fractures during the most recent Australian summer, and only made his return to competitive bowling during Australia's truncated World Twenty20 campaign. Though hopeful he will return to action in the next week, Australian captain Ricky Ponting nonetheless said the team was considering calling in a shadow player, given Watson's history of serious injuries.

"We might have to do that," Ponting said. "That has been some of the discussion this afternoon, particularly if we happen to have a batter hurt themselves in this game, we could be a little bit short. We certainly have to consider that. Shane was probably picked as the spare batter on the tour anyway, and someone who could give us some valuable overs if required, so it could get to the stage if someone happened to get hurt in this game that Shane could probably come in and play as a batsman if required anyway.

"He's had a scan today, and we'll probably get those (results) tomorrow morning. It's not a major thing at the moment , and we're hoping it's not anything major that shows up on the scan, but he's a bit sore so we're giving him a couple of days off.

"Hopefully within a couple of days he's right to start working back up on his bowling and hopefully he plays the Worcester game at 100% fitness. For him it's obviously a setback. He's disappointed he wasn't available for selection in this game. I don't know if it harms his chances any more for the first Test match, but it's an opportunity that has slipped out of his grasp I guess."

Watson will be joined by Graham Manou, Andrew McDonald and Mitchell Johnson on the sidelines for the 12-a-side tour match against Sussex, although none of the latter three are understood to be burdened with injury. Johnson's omission is a clear indication that selectors now view him as Australia's premier paceman, leaving Brett Lee, Peter Siddle, Stuart Clark and Ben Hilfenhaus to fight for the remaining fast-bowling slots for the Ashes series.

"We have got the right to play twelve players in this game, but that does not mean we will be using it as practice," Ponting said. "We will be using this game to get used to the conditions. We believe this wicket will be the most like Cardiff anywhere in the country, so it will be a good opportunity for us as batsmen to get used to the pace and bounce, maybe a bit of spin."

Watson was in buoyant mood at Australia's open media day in Hove on Monday, despite missing the day's training session. Though admitting he had pulled up "a little stiff" the previous day, he gave a strong indication that he expected to be back bowling shortly.

"I'm not exactly sure what the selectors are thinking," Watson said. "But my bowling has been progressing really well. The Twenty20 was the first time I had bowled in a game competitively since Christmas time. The things I've done technically are definitely going to help me improve a lot."