Richardson sidelined again due to troublesome shoulder

Australia's medical staff are hopeful the global cricketing shutdown will mean paceman Jhye Richardson won't miss too much cricket following recent shoulder surgery.

Richardson had an operation on his right shoulder late last month, the same shoulder he dislocated during a match against Pakistan more than a year ago that sidelined him for six months.

The 23-year-old returned to playing last summer but has still been troubled by his shoulder, which has continued to pop out and prevented him from throwing in the field.

Medicos have viewed the unscheduled break in the schedule this year as an "opportunistic time" to repair the injury and they hope Richardson will be fit again when cricket returns later in the year.

"It's a lengthy surgery but it does give him an opportunity now that we're not going to play until ... September, October, November or December ... he's obviously a chance with that," CA's chief medical officer Alex Kountouris told News Corp.

"All the ligaments become loose when you do dislocate and then the surgery essentially involves tightening things up.

"(The original injury) was nasty. He dived with a lot of force on his arm. It was something that was quite bad. It’s probably not surprising he’s had ongoing symptoms."

There are no firm timelines yet for Richardson's return, but the T20 World Cup in October and November - should it go ahead - is a logical target for the pacey right-armer.

The Western Australian was part of Australia's T20 squad for February’s tour of South Africa and will be in the mix for selection at the World Cup, which may yet be delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

News Corp also reported this week that Matthew Wade, an incumbent in Australia’s Test and T20 sides, has had minor surgery on his knee that is expected to sideline him for up to eight weeks.