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Nathan Lyon has slammed Kevin Pietersen comments suggesting Australia would benefit from him being hit in the head while batting so he could be subbed out of the game.
A wounded Lyon provided the iconic moment of this Ashes series on Saturday, batting with a badly injured calf to help Australia add 15 runs for the final wicket at Lord’s.
Such was Lyon’s state, the 35-year-old had to hobble down the stairs of the Lord’s Pavilion one wicket early to ensure he was not timed-out, before sitting with the crowd until batting.
Still needing crutches to move properly, the 35-year-old then limped onto the field without them, used his bat as a walking stick and even hopped a single once in the middle.
Kevin Pietersen. (Photo by Gareth Copley – ECB/ECB via Getty Images)
The effort won him a standing ovation from Lord’s and even a chant of his nickname Garry from sections of the crowd after he hit a four to help Australia set England a fourth-innings target of 371.
England went to stumps at 4-114 in pursuit.
The decision for Lyon to bat was met with questions in commentary on whether Australia had got desperate for runs by risking any further injury.
Pietersen also questioned on Sky Sports what would happen if Lyon was hit on the head and concussed amid England’s bumper barrage, allowing for a concussion substitute.
“Imagine if he (Lyon) had been hit on the head and got concussion,” Pietersen said.
“He’d have got a like-for-like replacement and a world class spinner (Murphy), based on how he performed in India, it gives food for thought.”
Lyon is understood to have heard of the Pietersen comments and hit out at them after play, given the Australian team’s trauma following Phillip Hughes’ 2014 death.
“I have heard comments that people thought I went out there to get hit in the head,” Lyon said.
“I’m really against that because I’ve lost one of my mates due to being hit in the head. So I think that’s a really poor excuse or conversation being had.”
Lyon played 13 Tests with Hughes, and was on the field at the SCG the day he died.
He will meet with Australia’s medical staff on Sunday to map out a recovery plan, but said he was shattered by the prospect his series was likely over.
“It’s been a lot more down than up,” Lyon said.
“I have been absolutely shattered. I have been in tears, I have been upset, I have been hurting. That shows this team means everything to me.
“And I will start this rehab journey now to get back and play my role and keep loving what I am able to do.”
Lyon’s wounded effort on Saturday was reminiscent of that Rick McCosker batting with a broken jaw in the 1977 Centenary Test, helping Australia to a 45-run victory.
England great Colin Cowdrey walked out to bat with a plastered broken arm at Lord’s in 1963, helping England save a Test against West Indies.
Nathan Lyon is checked on by Joe Root. (Photo by Mike Egerton/PA Images via Getty Images)
Lyon backed Murphy to withstand England’s all-out batting assault, as he prepares to hand over the mantle of Australia’s chief spinner for the first time in a decade.
“His stock ball is good enough in international cricket. We have seen that in India in arguably the hardest place to bowl spin,” Lyon said.
“It will be a different challenge with the England batters.
“If they do come at him, it provides Todd with a decent challenge. But a chance to leave his footmarks here in England. It is a big Ashes series, he is excited by the opportunity.
“I sat with Todd in the last session there and spoke about spin bowling as we do. I have a lot of confidence in Todd. He is a great kid. He is willing to learn along the way.
“I have told him my phone is always on, it doesn’t matter if I am sitting in the changeroom with him or I am sitting at home watching it in bed.”
Lyon said he was gutted by the prospect of missing the rest of the series after 100 straight Tests, but was adamant it would not be the end of his Test career.
The Headingley Test will be the first one Lyon will miss since Lord’s 2013.
“I’ve been extremely lucky with injuries. I’ve been around since August 2011 and we’ve had 126 Test matches and I’ve played 122 of them,” Lyon said.
“This is just a little speed bump in the road. This isn’t career-defining. I am hungrier than ever to get back out there.”
© AAP
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