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England suffered a double blow on Monday evening when they returned to the cricket field after recording an emphatic 3-0 triumph over Pakistan in the Test series.

The hosts were outclassed in a Twenty20 game at Bristol but the more worrying news for them came when top strike bowler Steve Harmison was ruled out of the one-day series because of a back problem.

Harmison was one of the biggest heroes of England’s success in the Tests with 20 wickets in four matches and his ouster is a big blow for their attack that looks less than ordinary without him.

The lanky pacer suffered from a painful back during the Test series but managed to brave through it.

A scan report initially cleared him of a serious injury last week but England decided against fielding him in a Twenty20 match against Pakistan on Monday.

With the Ashes in Australia just two months away, the England authorities decided against putting Harmison at a risk and announced he would be unavailable for the one-dayers.

Harmison played a major role in England’s stunning Ashes triumph last summer and is seen as one of their biggest hopes for the return tour of Australia later this year.

Source:The News