Australian fast bowler Michael Neser has succumbed to another soft-tissue injury ahead of an intense 12 months of Test cricket for the national side.
The 36-year-old paceman sustained a strain in his right calf muscle while training with the Test squad in Brisbane ahead of this month's home series against Bangladesh.
While Neser was not chosen in the 13-man squad for the two-Test series, he was one of the standby bowlers, along with South Australia quick Brendan Doggett, who were helping the team prepare.
Cricket Australia, in a statement, said Neser would "now set his sights on the tour of South Africa later this year".
It is a blow for the Queenslander who has battled calf and hamstring injuries in recent years.
The veteran showed his class last summer when called into the side for three home Tests, taking 15 wickets at an average of 19.93 in the Ashes series.
Australia quick Josh Hazlewood, set to return from injury against Bangladesh, missed all of the Ashes series and captain Pat Cummins played just one Test.
With at least 20 Tests on the calendar between now and the end of the away Ashes series next year, reliable campaigners like Neser will be vital backup to share the load.
"It's very important," Hazlewood said.
"I think it speaks for itself what happened last (summer). Patty played one Test, I played none and Ness and Doggy jumped in when they were needed and we won the series. That speaks for itself."
Meanwhile, Australia will plan for a pre-series training camp rather than warmup games ahead of the five-Test series against India, starting in January next year.
It is the same modus operandi they enacted before last year's tour of Sri Lanka and the 2023 away series against India.
"We feel as though we've got enough time to immerse ourselves in those conditions. We won't be taking on a practice game. It'll just be more around the location," Australia coach Andrew McDonald told cricket.com.au
"We've got a couple of options there. We have gone to the UAE previously and we have also gone into India last time into Bangalore, so we're just working through what that would look like in terms of how we then manage the individuals."
McDonald also told the website that wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis was still on track to join the squad against Bangladesh after suffering back spasms during an intra-squad match at Allan Border Field.
"He's had a back flare up. He has had these from time to time. There'll be no issue, it'll just be letting it settle down and then getting him back into work," McDonald said.
"We've got enough time. We'll probably be conservative on that, make sure that's right before you see him return in the nets and the preparation phase … there is no concern around whether he would be available or not."
