England suffer another injury blow, Gus Atkinson ruled out fifth Ashes Test in Sydney

England fast bowler Gus Atkinson has been ruled out of the fifth and final Ashes Test in Sydney with a hamstring injury. He sustained the injury during the fourth Test against Australia in Melbourne and has become the third England bowler on the tour to get injured after Mark Wood and Jofra Archer.

Atkinson pulled up during the fifth over of Australia's second innings during the Boxing Day Test and left the field immediately before going for scans later in the day. Eventually, he has been ruled out of the final Test match and the visitors have opted against calling up a replacement as two fast bowlers - Matthew Potts and Matthew Fisher - are already in the squad. 

Shoaib Bashir is another option available in the England squad who hasn't played a single Test despite being picked in the squad as a lead spinner. Instead, England have opted for Will Jacks' all-round skills who has fared decently as a batter at eight while his spin hasn't required much with conditions being conducive to fast bowlers.

Atkinson took 6 wickets in 6 innings

Atkinson wasn't at his best during the series, accounting for six wickets in six innings at an average of 47.33 and a strike rate of 73. He had arrived in Australia as the leader of the attack but struggled to maintain his pace in the first two Tests. He went wicketless in Perth and then could pick only three wickets in the day-night Test before being dropped for the Adelaide Test.

Jofra Archer got ruled out after the third Test, which paved the way back for him, only to get injured at the MCG. Meanwhile, the pitch in Sydney will be under the scanner after a two-day finish in MCG and it remains to be seen if the conditions will finally be decent enough for the batters to score runs.