In a major blow to Perth Scorchers, their captain Ashton Turner has been ruled out of the remainder of Big Bash League (BBL) 2023-24. On December 21, Turner via his Instagram account shared that he underwent successful knee surgery.
In the clash against Hobart Hurricanes on December 20 in Perth, Turner limped off the field after bowling just one ball. He had to undergo surgery to repair a meniscus tear in his right knee.
"The incident saw him leave the field and take no further part in the match, with subsequent scans revealing surgery was required," a Scorchers statement said. “An exact timeframe for Turner's return will be determined in due course.”
In Turner's absence, Cooper Connolly completed his over. Despite Chris Jordan's 20-ball 59, the Scorchers won the game with nine wickets in hand and 23 balls to spare as on-debut Zak Crawley and Aaron Hardie scored half-centuries.
Turner has struggled with his knee throughout the season. He did not play in two Sheffield Shield games for Western Australia before the BBL break. He was hoping to play the tournament and then undergo surgery before an incident against the Hurricanes forced him to.
Scorchers are without a captain ahead of their clash against Melbourne Renegades on Boxing Day at Optus Stadium. While Josh Inglis is their vice-captain, Hardie is another candidate to lead the side.
A day before getting injured, Turner was roped in for his base price of Rs 1 crore by Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 mini-auction in Dubai. The franchise recently appointed Justin Langer as their head coach.
With exactly three months to go before IPL action starts, Turner faces a race against time to regain full fitness. In case Turner fails to do so, they can ask for a replacement. LSG who had Rs 95 lakh remaining in the purse after the auction will be able to get a place whose base price was under Rs 2 crore.
Turner is expected to return to IPL after four years. He made his IPL debut in 2019 for Rajasthan Royals (RR) and recorded three ducks in a row in four appearances.
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
