Plunkett ruled out of remainder of Australia ODIs

England fast-bowler Liam Plunkett has been ruled out of the remaining two matches of the One-Day International (ODI) series against Australia, it was confirmed on Thursday (January 25).

Plunkett injured his left hamstring during the third ODI in Sydney which forced his removal from the attack after bowling just 1.2 overs in Australia's innings. He was unable to return to the field during that match and England captain Eoin Morgan confirmed that Plunkett has been ruled out of the matches in Adelaide and Perth.

"Liam's going to be out for potentially ten days," Morgan told ecb.co.uk. "He's going to stay with the squad to do his rehabilitation with the backroom staff which is great to have him around. He's been a huge part of our progression. Potentially looking at the T20 series for when he'll come back."

The fast-bowler has been an understated mainstay of England's white-ball attack since he returned to the side in 2015 after a four-year absence. He has taken 40 wickets at 23.22 from 21 matches since the start of 2017 and took his 100th ODI wicket during the second match of the current series at the Gabba.

Plunkett's injury means there will be at least one change to England's team for the Australia Day match in Adelaide tomorrow (Friday January 25). David Willey, Tom Curran and Jake Ball are the other seamers in England's squad who will come into contention. Despite the series already been won, Morgan ruled out other wholesale changes.

"When we first came together as a team, we had about 83 or 84 ODIs left before the start of the 2019 World Cup," he said. "To gain more experience and build confidence within the side, showing a lot of consistency in selection has contributed to that. Maintaining that for the next two games is important.

"Australia are a very good team and to win a series away from home is a very good achievement. The next two games are going to be pretty difficult ones. They are going to have some great support here at Adelaide Oval tomorrow. It's Australia Day so it's going to be another big challenge against a strong team."