England's injury problems on the Ashes tour of Australia deepened today as their left-arm spinner Ashley Giles was ruled out for up to six weeks with a fractured left wrist.

Giles was hit by Durham fast bowler Steve Harmison in the nets at the Adelaide Oval while preparing for the second Test starting on Thursday. He continued with his net but was sent for an X-ray later after complaining of soreness.

"It was the first ball I faced from Harmy and it struck me at the point of the left wrist," said Giles. "At first I thought it was just bruising and kept on batting. But afterwards the pain just got worse and worse. Now I have been told I will be out for anything up to six weeks which is obviously very disappointing."

That would mean that he will be unavailable until the fourth Test starting in Melbourne on Boxing Day. It will be a serious blow to the captain, Nasser Hussain, who has always turned to Giles as a means of exerting some control on the opposition batsmen.

Giles and Hussain became the targets for much criticism last winter when he employed the negative tactics of bowling from over the wicket into the footmarks outside leg stump in an attempt to keep Sachin Tendulkar quiet. On this tour, however, he had been bowling well and had not been afraid to give the ball more air with a certain amount of success.

So far on the tour Giles has taken 17 wickets in all matches at 32.17 each in all matches at under four runs an over. At a time when Australian batsmen in all forms of cricket have been enjoying themselves at the expense of English bowlers, that is a very creditable return. In the first Test in Brisbane he was the most successful of England's bowlers with six wickets.

Giles did not play in the match against Australia A in Hobart, giving a rare outing to off-spinner Richard Dawson who took one for 70 in 16 overs. The Yorkshireman now comes into contention for a place in the Adelaide Test team. Before Hobart, he had bowled only once on tour – in the opening festival match at Lilac Hill – where he failed to take a wicket in his five overs costing 35 runs.

Dawson last played in a Test on the tour of India last winter when he made his debut and a favourable impression. It was his temperament as much as his play that marked him out as having a future in Test cricket then, and that will now face a severe examination if he is exposed to the Australian batsmen in Adelaide.

© CricInfo Ltd.