Hayden on course for Scotland

Matthew Hayden is expected to recover from his broken toe in time for Australia’s first World Cup game against Scotland.

He sustained the injury during the third Chappell-Hadlee series ODI, yet still managed to score an Australian record of 181. Since then he has recovered sufficiently to take the field against Scotland, but he will be wearing a special toe protector when batting.

Skipper Ricky Ponting spoke to reporters about his team mate’s recovery: “He has done a lot of batting, and running, people have been worried about impact. He seems to be coming on well and is right on track for that first game.”

Hayden returning at the top will force Shane Watson back down the order, probably to number seven, even though he has scored two fifties at the top of the order in Australia’s warm up matches.