The ‘Wild Thing’ has looked to his long-term cricket future, electing to undergo surgery that will see him sidelined for at least 12 months
Lance Morris is set for a long stint on the sidelines after opting for surgery to fix his troublesome back.
Morris was set to add to his three caps for Australia in the ongoing BKT Tyres ODI series against South Africa and joined the squad early in Darwin in preparation.
However, the fast bowler experienced lower back soreness after a session and was sent home to Perth for investigation where it was revealed he was carrying a lumbar bone stress injury.
Morris has made the difficult decision to go down the surgery path, which puts his recovery time at a minimum of 12 months.
The pars stabilisation surgery will be performed by pioneering New Zealand surgeon Rowan Schoten, who in October operated on Cameron Green alongside fellow surgeon Grahame Inglis.
“I feel this is the most logical way to realise my full potential and return to my very best cricket for the Scorchers, Western Australia and Australia long into the future,” Morris said in a statement.
“I also take great confidence in others who have undergone similar procedures and returned to their best. I plan to work hard through my recovery and return when the time is right.”
Morris adds to a growing list of Australians who have recently undergone spinal procedures with Green, James Pattinson, Jason Behrendorff and Ben Dwarshuis all opting for the more extreme form of action.
This is the third year that Morris has held a Cricket Australia contract but a run of injuries has prevented the West Australian from playing more than three international matches.
Morris missed selection in the 2023 Ashes squad after a back stress injury flared up after spending time in the Test squad the previous summer.
In early 2024 a side strain ended his second ODI against West Indies early before a “hot-spot” showed up after a routine scan at the end of the 2023-24 season.
In October 2024 Morris had to deal with a “frustrating” quad injury but recovered to play four Sheffield Shield, five One-Day Cup and eight Big Bash matches for the summer.
He sent down a total of 169.1 overs of the summer, a slight increase on the previous season (146.1 overs).
In his last professional match he took 5-26 against NSW in the Shield in March.
BKT Tyres ODI Series – Australia v South Africa
August 19: South Africa won by 98 runs
August 22: South Africa won by 84 runs
August 24: Third ODI v South Africa, Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay, 2:30pm AEST
Australia ODI squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Adam Zampa
South Africa ODI squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Corbin Bosch, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, Tony de Zorzi, Aiden Markram, Kwena Maphaka, Senuran Muthusamy, Keshav Maharaj, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Prenelan Subrayen
