Australia Captain Clarke ruled out of New Zealand match

Wednesday, 12 June 2013 01:21 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters: Australia Captain Michael Clarke has not recovered from his back injury and will miss the side’s second Champions Trophy group match against New Zealand, Cricket Australia said on Tuesday.

Clarke missed Australia’s opening match on Saturday when Australia lost to England by 48 runs and will also sit out Wednesday’s crucial match against their trans-Tasman rivals at Edgbaston.

“Michael is continuing to have intensive treatment in London, and whilst he is making good progress, he has not improved sufficiently enough to play the game against New Zealand on Wednesday,” CA physiotherapist Alex Kountouris said in a statement.

“We will continue to monitor his progress and determine his availability for next week’s final group game against Sri Lanka.” Australia will play Sri Lanka in their final Group ‘A’ match at The Oval in London on Monday.