Bowling headache for England as spinner Jack Leach ruled out of Ashes series with back injury

LONDON (AP) — England’s Ashes preparations were rocked Sunday after spinner Jack Leach was ruled out of the entire series because of a back stress fracture with no obvious replacement for the key bowler.

The opening test is less than two weeks away and the news is a huge blow for England head coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes, who have repeatedly talked up Leach’s importance during their 12 months in charge.

The 31-year-old Leach claimed four wickets during England’s 10-wicket victory over Ireland at Lord’s, in the one-off test which finished Saturday, but developed low back symptoms during the match.

A subsequent scan on Sunday revealed a stress fracture in the lumbar region of the spine, which will rule the spinner out of all five tests against Australia.

“England will announce a replacement for the Ashes series in due course,” an England statement said.

Leach has taken 124 wickets in 35 tests overall with best match figures of 10-166.

The first Ashes test starts June 16 at Edgbaston.

Leach impressed during the winter tours of Pakistan and New Zealand, and has enjoyed a strong start to the domestic season with Somerset. That further increased the belief Leach could play a key role in the Ashes despite struggling during the previous series in Australia.

Leach’s absence will significantly change the makeup and balance of Stokes’ bowling lineup.

The Somerset bowler was the only spinner named in the 16-man squad on Saturday for the first two tests and England’s depth in that area will now be tested.

Leg-spinning all-rounder Rehan Ahmed is highly regarded after becoming the youngest man to play test cricket for England during the Pakistan series, while orthodox spinner Will Jacks picked up six wickets in two tests in December.

Matt Parkinson played against New Zealand last year but has fallen out of favor. England batter Joe Root's occasional offspin has claimed 54 test wickets at an average of 46.

England could try to tempt Moeen Ali or Adil Rashid out of their red-ball retirement.

England does have an array of seam options, but James Anderson and Ollie Robinson were rested for the Ireland test with minor niggles and Jofra Archer has already been ruled out of the summer action.

Olly Stone is also currently sidelined with a hamstring issue and concerns remain over Stokes’ ability to bowl due to a long-standing left knee injury, which only heightened Leach’s growing role in the side.

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