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AUSTRALIAN captain Michael Clarke has now become a Test by Test proposition with his dodgy back.
And Australian physiotherapist Alex Kountouris admits medical staff are going to have to be firmer with Clarke and sometimes rest him from Test cricket.
Michael Clarke of Australia had his back stretched by team physiotherapistAlex Kountouris at Trent Bridge. Picture: Ryan Pierse Source: Getty Images
Clarke is confident of being fit for the first Ashes Test against England at the Gabba, but the latest episode with his back has raised concerns about his long-term future in the baggy green.
CA have instituted a rehabilitation program to prevent a career-threatening breakdown, but when asked if the skipper now faces being rested from Test matches, Kountouris was unequivocal.
"Absolutely," he said. ''We will get him up for the Ashes, one Test at a time, but we are hopeful he will get through the whole series.
''I'm still very confident we will get a lot of cricket out of Michael but there are going to be times where we are firmer now when we say OK, you just can't play this game.
''Obviously we are prioritising Test cricket, but we are going to have look at what he plays and when he plays. That's no different to what other sports do with their mature players.''
Clarke has managed his degenerative disc since his teenage years but the problem has escalated dramatically this year.
Struggles with his back marred Australia's tour of India in March, with the 32-year-old forced to sit out the fourth Test in Delhi and relinquish the captaincy to Shane Watson.
Australian coach Darren Lehmann, right, with captain Michael Clarke. Picture: Glyn Kirk. Source: News Limited
Australia's best batsman has since missed the Indian Premier League and the entire current one-day series in India.
Clarke appears a certain starter for the Ashes opener at the Gabba and his playing comeback will become official when he will be named in the NSW team to play Tasmania in the Sheffield Shield match at Blacktown, beginning on Wednesday.
But there are no longer any iron-clad guarantees of his participation in any game of international cricket.
''We will just play it by ear ... it is something that we can't predict,'' Kountouris said.
''We know the signs. It's not just a matter of rolling him out and pushing him out onto the field to play a game.
''The load he has put through his back has gone up in recent years and because of that he has had a few more flare-ups.
''We are certainly going to look at what he plays and when he plays.''
Cricket Australia high-performance coach Graeme Hick can sympathise with Clarke. The former England batsman battled back problems in the mid-1990s but managed to play Test cricket just shy of his 35th birthday.
"I don't know Michael's exact injury and it could be different to mine," Hick said.
"When it's bad as a batter, it is uncomfortable, you tend to get sharp pains. I don't know how uncomfortable Michael gets but I had a problem from being quite tall.
"But once I identified my back problem, I had it sorted out and it took probably two years for it to settle down and for me to realise how to manage it.
"In my case, it didn't shorten my career but I did stop bowling for a few months. I was pretty lucky to be able to play on with it."
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