Hazlewood cleared of injury however Abbott out of Ashes Test
Josh Hazlewood has taken 295 Test scalps maintaining an average of 24.21 during his 76-Test career
Hazlewood received clearance to link up with the Aussie lineup ahead of the opening Ashes match after an injury scare, although compatriot Sean Abbott is unavailable
The two experienced muscle problems while representing New South Wales against Victoria during Sheffield Shield action this past Wednesday
Scans showed Hazlewood, 34 escaped tissue injury. Abbott, 33, who hasn't played Tests, has a significant hamstring issue
Skipper Pat Cummins is out of the first Test, beginning on 21 November, so the loss of a key pace option in Hazlewood might have represented a significant setback
Abbott was not expected to participate during the Western Australia Test, while Hazlewood will combine fellow quicks Starc and Boland as the specialist seamers
Cummins, who is recovering from spinal concerns, appears to be likely to comeback for the Brisbane match beginning December 4 in Brisbane
Batsman Steve Smith will captain the side in Cummins' absence
Like many of Australian cricketers, Hazlewood participated in the current round of Sheffield Shield matches ahead of the historic rivalry
Before this week, he hadn't featured red-ball cricket for New South Wales in more than a year
He noticed discomfort in his hamstring towards the end of the opposition's batting recently exiting the play for safety reasons
Neither Hazlewood nor Abbott came out to bat during their team's second batting effort in a losing cause by 300 runs
"There's seven days before the international cricket - we consistently choose being cautious," commented Cummins
"The medical staff sought to identify what was happening before pushing it and potentially making anything worse"
"Uncommon to see him chipper, making it encouraging to see him smiling"
"He knows his body really well. It seemed he felt somewhat concerned (and) wanted to get it checked out"
Abbott has won 57 caps representing Australia in ODI and T20 cricket
The uncapped Brendan Doggett represents additional pace options in the squad, acting as backup for Starc, Boland and Hazlewood
