Untimely accident rules Bancroft out of Shield final in blow to chances of Test recall
Cameron Bancroft will miss a golden opportunity to press his claims for a recall to the Test team after he was ruled out of the Sheffield Shield final due to a cycling accident.
The 31-year-old fell off his bike on Sunday and after being diagnosed with a concussion he has been omitted from the team to face Tasmania in the Sheffield Shield final at the WACA Ground in Perth from Thursday.
Bancroft has been one of the leading run-scorers at domestic level for the past three seasons and was controversially overlooked for a Test recall when David Warner retired in January.
With makeshift opener Steve Smith and veteran Usman Khawaja struggling at the top of the order in their four Tests together against the West Indies and New Zealand, there is a chance the selectors could be looking to bring in an experienced specialist like Bancroft next summer for the five-match home series against India.
All-rounder Aaron Hardie has given WA a boost by declaring he is fit to play.
Bancroft missed out to Tasmania all-rounder Beau Webster, who was named the Sheffield Shield’s player of the season on Tuesday.
Webster edged out Bancroft, NSW batter Ollie Davies and Western Australia quick Joel Paris to clinch the award, which is determined by tallying umpire votes across the home-and-away season.
The 30-year-old scored three centuries, including an unbeaten 167 against Victoria earlier this month.
With the season’s final match looming, he is the Shield’s leading scorer with 914 runs at 65.28.
Bancroft, second on the scoring charts, finished more than 100 behind on 778 for the home-and-away season.
Webster has also been ladder-leading Tasmania’s second-highest wicket taker this summer with 26 at an average of 28.46, and enjoyed career-best figures of 4-32 against South Australia in October.
with AAP