With just three weeks to go until the start of the County Championship, things are looking bleak for Australian bowler Michael Hogan.
The 33-year-old, who was born in Australia but has been bowling for British domestic team Glamorgan since 2013, recently acquired an injury which has cast doubt over his ability to play in the forthcoming County Championship season.
Hogan was playing for Western Australia back in February when he injured his hamstring, and has since been ruled out of the forthcoming Sheffield Shield final against Victoria, taking place this weekend. After suffering from a recurring injury, it was decided that Hogan should withdraw, but with three weeks to go until his season starter for Glamorgan, things are looking worrying.
Toby Radford, head coach at Glamorgan, said: “We’re in touch with Michael Hogan. He’s due to fly over in the next couple of weeks so we’ll assess him and hopefully get him fit fast for the start of the season.”
It’s ambitious of Radford to say so, particularly with so little time for such an injury to heal. The championship season begins for Glamorgan on 12 April, when the team will take on Leicestershire at Leicestershire County Cricket Club. As if the not having the home advantage wasn’t enough, Hogan is also one of Glamorgan’s key players, and as such coach Radford has said he does “not want to take any chances.”
“Hamstrings can recur so you’ve got to make sure you’re fit before you come back,” he said. “He’s obviously a key bowler for us but we hope he’ll be fit for Leicester and he tends to heal quickly.”
Radford is a realist though, and a potential replacement bowler has already been considered, though no formal arrangements have been finalised. “We’re still discussing it,” added Radford. “I’ve had conversations with a number of coaches; we’re still looking at that. It could be the start of the season; it could be a little later.”
Career highlights for Hogan include a top score of 52 as a batter for Glamorgan during their first-class cricket match against Gloucestershire in Bristol, back in 2013. As a bowler, he achieved a top score of 7-92 during the same match.
He is also a huge asset to Australia, having achieved a score of 5-44 while bowling for the team during the Western Warriors versus the Victorian Bushrangers game at Melbourne in 2010.
