T20 World Cup: After losing historic opening match, Italy hit with more bad news

Italy’s captain Wayne Madsen is likely to miss the rest of the T20 World Cup league stage after dislocating his shoulder during their first match against Scotland, according to head coach John Davison.

Madsen got injured while diving to stop a boundary and landed awkwardly, forcing him off the field with his arm in a makeshift sling. He was later ruled out as Italy chased a big target with essentially one player short.



“He dislocated his shoulder. The physio managed to get it back in, but he'll have to go and get more scans to see how serious it is,” Davison said.

He added, “I think it'll be doubtful.... I'm not going to say he's out, but I think it'll be doubtful if you dislocate your shoulder in cricket. It's going to be pretty tough to come back from, but we'll see what the scans say.”

Davison admitted the injury was a big setback for the team: “A captain going down like that in the start of the game was a tough one for us. Things weren't really going our way either.”

Still, he hopes Madsen will stay with the squad and help from the sidelines: “I hope so. He's an integral part of the team. He's a very experienced head. We might have to give him a red shirt, but he can join the coaching staff.”

Despite the blow, Italy showed some fight. Ben and Harry Manenti put together a strong partnership to keep them in the chase, and Davison felt the target was possible at one stage. “200 on that wicket is achievable… I was still hopeful that we could get back into the contest. It would only take a couple of big overs.”

He also noted that many players were new to big crowds: “A few guys in that team haven't played in front of over 100 people… So it's a great experience.”


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