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Australia to make late fitness call on Pucovski's shoulder

Young opener facing an anxious wait after suffering a partial dislocation of his right shoulder while fielding on fifth day of the SCG Test

Will Pucovski faces an anxious wait to see if he can recover from a shoulder injury in time for the fourth and final Vodafone Test against India, with Australia giving him every opportunity to prove his fitness.

Australia confirmed Pucovski suffered a "shoulder subluxation" injury while diving in the field on the fifth day of the third Test in Sydney.

A subluxation is a partial dislocation of the shoulder joint, when the ball of the upper arm bone partly comes out of the socket in the shoulder.

Pucovski joins injury list with shoulder complaint

In clear discomfort and holding his right shoulder after the dive, Pucovski soon left the field and was later sent for scans.

"He will continue rest and rehabilitation over the next two days before a decision is made on his fitness for the fourth Vodafone Test match," a Cricket Australia spokesperson said.

If Pucovski is unable to recover from the injury, it could me a fifth opening batsman is required to be used by Australia in four Tests, with Marcus Harris already in the Test squad.

Pucovski scored a stylish 62 in the first innings in Sydney, prompting former Test captain Ricky Ponting to declare the youngster a 10-year Test player.

Pucovski impresses with composed 62 on Test debut

Opening partner David Warner also admitted on Monday he still felt nervous about his groin injury, as his return from a lengthy layoff coincided with the back-to-back Tests.

If Pucovski wasn't deemed fit, Australia would again face a quandary with what to do at the top of the order.

Having already dropped Joe Burns from the squad, Harris remains in the extended group and could be an option to be recalled.

The other option would likely be returning Matthew Wade to the top, allowing Travis Head to make a comeback in Brisbane after being axed for Sydney.

 Additional reporting by AAP

Vodafone Test Series v India 2020-21

Australia Test squad: Tim Paine (c), Sean Abbott, Pat Cummins, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, James Pattinson, Will Pucovski, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade, David Warner

India Test squad: Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw, Cheteshwar Pujara, Hanuma Vihari, Shubman Gill, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, T Natarajan

First Test: Australia won by eight wickets

Second Test: India won by eight wickets

Third Test: Match drawn

Fourth Test: January 15-19, Gabba, 11am AEDT