England seamer Craig Overton has revealed that he may be forced to sit out the Boxing Day Ashes Test against Australia due to a rib injury.
The 23-year-old was struck by a Pat Cummins bouncer in the second match of the series, which he then aggravated in Perth earlier this week.
Overton admits that it is touch-and-go whether he will play any part at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, with England's hopes of winning back The Ashes already at an end.
"We're going to assess it over the next couple of days," he told BBC Sport. "Melbourne might be a push but it's still an option to play at the minute.
"We're still pretty confident that we've competed in this series and we're not far off winning games, they've just performed better for longer periods. We're still fighting to get that result and show everybody what we can do out here.
"It's tough, obviously they're a good side in their home conditions and their bowlers are suited to playing out here with the pace they've got. We need to find a little bit more in our side and score a few more runs and take a few more wickets."
Overton made an unbeaten 41 at number nine on his first outing for England and has claimed six wickets in his two matches to date.
Daniel Lewis
