MELBOURNE, Dec 27 AAP - Middle-order batsman Darren Lehmann will miss the New Year Ashes Test against England because of his bacterial infection.

Lehmann went to hospital last Monday and was put on an intravenous drip because of the infection, which doctors suspect entered his body through a foot blister.

The left-hander said today he was aiming to return to the Australian side for the one-dayer against Sri Lanka on January 9.

Martin Love took Lehmann's spot in the Test side on Christmas day and scored 62 today on debut.

Lehmann said he "never felt worse" when he was admitted to hospital here on Monday night.

"Today is the first day I've been out of hospital, just an hour or so away to come down and say hello to the lads, but I'm really tired again and I'm heading back there," he said in a statement.

"The doctors think it's a common bacteria, but apparently they managed to catch things early and killed it before it grew too much."

Lehmann added he hoped to be released from hospital tomorrow and will then return to his home city of Adelaide to regain his strength.

He initially felt sore in his groin after the weekend's international one-dayer against Sri Lanka in Perth, where he scored a century and was man of the match.

"By 10pm (on Monday) my groin was inflamed and I couldn't even touch it, I was shaky and feeling really ill," he said.

"(Team doctor) Trefor James came in to see me and I was lying in a couch in the team room with four towels around me, shaking."

Doctors gave Lehmann three antibiotics through his drip to purge the infection.

Lehmann said he had disinfected his gear to ensure no repeat of the problem.

© 2002 AAP NewsWire

This report does not necessarily represent the views of the Australian Cricket Board.