Marsh injury opens door for Khawaja

Australia have been dealt another injury blow with batsman Shaun Marsh ruled out of the remainder of the Qantas Tour of Sri Lanka due to a broken finger, while Usman Khawaja has been called up as a replacement for next week's two Twenty20 internationals.

The injury occurred during a fielding incident in Sri Lanka's innings in the third ODI on Sunday, before Marsh carried the ailment into the run chase later that evening where he could only manage 1 from eight deliveries in the visiting side's tense two-wicket victory to take a 2-1 series lead.

The latest blow for the tourists comes just 24 hours after it was revealed fellow Western Australian Nathan Coulter-Nile was set for a lengthy rehabilitation stint due to a bone stress injury he picked up while a part of the touring party on the island nation.

Quick Single: Coulter-Nile faces 'lengthy' absence

"Shaun suffered an injury to his left little finger whilst fielding in the match yesterday," said Bupa Support Team Physiotherapist David Beakley.

"An X-ray after the match confirmed a fracture and Shaun will now return to Perth to allow time for this to heal."

After scoring a century in one of the squad's pre-series practice matches, Marsh was left out of the first two Tests against Sri Lanka as the home side completed a pair of crushing defeats in Pallekele and Galle.

The 33-year-old was recalled for the third Test at the SSC in Colombo and compiled a superb hundred to put his side in a strong position, but one in which they were unable to maintain.

The moment of bringing up his fourth Test ton was made even more special by the arrival of wife Rebecca and two-month-old son Austin in the Sri Lankan capital a night earlier.

As the tour ventured into 50-over territory, Marsh again found himself watching on from the sidelines as the two nations split the first two games in the five-match series.

The decision to send captain Steve Smith home ahead of a busy summer opened the door for Marsh, but the classy left-hander was unable to make the most of this opportunity as a terrific diving catch to dismiss Dhananjaya de Silva was overshadowed by the close catching call to send him on his way in front of a rambunctious crowd in Dambulla.

Marsh's injury sees him ruled out of the remaining two ODIs, as well as the two T20s that follow next week.

Khawaja is the only specialist batsman still with the ODI squad in Sri Lanka, while the National Selection Panel has opted for the Queensland batsman to replace Marsh in the T20 squad.

Khawaja, 29, was Australia's leading run-scorer during the ICC World T20 earlier this year – the side's most recent assignment in the shortest format – and was a shining light in the Sydney Thunder's championship run in the KFC Big Bash League with a remarkable 345 runs at an average of 172.5 and the blistering strike rate of 163.5 last season.

Australia T20 squad: David Warner (c), Scott Boland, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, John Hastings, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Usman Khawaja, Chris Lynn, Glenn Maxwell, Peter Nevill, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa.

Fixtures

Fourth ODI – Rangiri Dambulla Stadium, 31 August at 7pm AEST
Fifth ODI – Pallekele Stadium, 4 September at 7pm AEST
First T20 – Pallekele Stadium, 6 September at 11:30pm AEST
Second T20 – R. Premadasa Stadium, 9 September at 11:30pm AEST