Injuries follow boot camp

Stuart MacGill is one of three Australian players to have picked up an injury from last week’s boot camp in Queensland, which included abseiling, hiking and midnight orienteering through dense forests.

MacGill who declined to comment on the injury is believed to have sustained a strained knee, and will be assessed by a medical panel later this week.

Michael Clarke and Shane Watson are also understood to have picked up slight injuries, but both players are believed to have recovered, with Clarke batting in the Sydney Cricket Ground nets with captain Ricky Ponting yesterday.

Peter Young, the communications directory for Cricket Australia, told media: “There are a few aches and pains and Stuart has been told to take it easy for a week.”

“This was one of the main issues discussed before the camp, which in formal terms is called risk assessment or risk management. With this program, we were conscious that we did not want to risk our elite athletes.”

“It was gruelling, but we were of the view that player safety levels were appropriate,” he added.

The Australian team head to Malaysia for a tri-series involving India and the West Indies within the next few days, with their first game against the West Indies on 12th September.