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Fitness worries for Ian Austin; silver lining for Chris Lewis

All-rounder Ian Austin dealt the England World Cup squad a bit of a bloow, when he was ruled out of the PPP Healthcare county championship fixture against Leicestershire following an injury to his thigh.

The Lancashire all-rounder is seen as a key component of the England squad, and with England's opening game against Sri Lanka now just a fortnight away, the selectors have a bit of a worry on their hands.

Austin himself pooh-poohed the worries and indicated that he would be reporting for training, with the rest of the squad, this weekend. However, the selectors are believed to be looking at a fitness test before deciding whether to risk playing him.

If he fails to make the grade, a leading contender for his berth would be Chris Lewis, the Leicestershire all-rounder who, thus far this season, has had innings of 139 against Essex and 77 not out against Lancashire, besides taking 7 wickets in the two games.