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Pucovski remains sidelined as Maddinson surges into 'A' side

In-form Maddinson wins spot after earning player-of-the-match honours in Sheffield Shield, replacing fellow Victoria batter still on mend from concussion

Australia A will face England Lions at the MCG without young gun Will Pucovski, who has been ruled out of the day-night match as he continues to recover from concussion. 

Pucovski will be replaced in the 12-man squad for the four-day game beginning Saturday by state teammate Nic Maddinson, who scored 95 and 105 not out in Victoria's Marsh Sheffield Shield clash at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Maddinson gives NSW the blues but falls short of ton

The 22-year-old Pucovski suffered a freak concussion while batting during the Cricket Australia XI against the Lions on the Gold Coast earlier this month.

Attempting a quick single, Pucovski landed heavily on his head after his bat stuck in the ground as he completed the run.

He was ruled out of the rest of the 50-over matches against the Lions and will also miss Victoria's next Shield clash.

"Will is recovering from the concussion and medical staff have assessed that he will not be available for the Australia A game or the next Sheffield Shield match," said Cricket Australia sports science chief Alex Kountouris.

His replacement, Maddinson, is in supreme touch in first-class cricket after playing through a slump in the recently-concluded KFC BBL season.

While he averaged just 10 for the Melbourne Stars, in red-ball cricket for Victoria this season he is averaging 93 with two centuries and a top score of 224.

Maddinson says he can't put his finger on his stark form reversal between the two formats.

Maddinson mauls Blues in blazing SCG century

"No idea," Maddinson told cricket.com.au on Friday. "It's just one of those things.

"With preparation, I think I've learnt to have a bit more of a mental routine.

"Playing a lot of four-day cricket I feel like I've got a pretty good grasp on how I want to play now and I'm confident.

"In Big Bash, you're playing every second or third day and when you lose confidence and get on a run it's really difficult to get it back.

"I was playing really well in the nets, I put in a lot of hard work in it just wasn't happening for me on the ground."

Pucovski has a long history of concussion, starting with a head knock while playing Aussie Rules footballer as a teenager.

He has since been hit on the helmet batting for his state, hit with an errant ball at training and knocked his head on a door of his Melbourne home.

Australia A squad: Moises Henriques (c), Jackson Bird, Marcus Harris, Josh Inglis (wk), Usman Khawaja (vc), Nic Maddinson, Michael Neser, Kurtis Patterson, James Pattinson, Mark Steketee, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson