Big Bash League: Perth Scorchers captain Ashton Turner set to progress return from calf injury ahead of season

Perth Scorchers captain Ashton Turner has hit an important milestone in his return from a calf injury as he eyes the start of the looming Big Bash campaign. Turner has not played Sheffield Shield this season and his involvement in the One-Day Cup has been limited to just two matches after hurting his calf. But more than a month out from the start of Perth’s Big Bash campaign, Turner said his rehabilitation was progressing well as he planned a return to the nets this season. “I’m starting batting again this week. Injuries are part of being a professional cricketer. They’re frustrating, but it gives me a chance to reflect,” he said. “I get a little bit of an opportunity to put some time into my body, time into the technical parts of my game, and then have one eye on the Big Bash summer, which is quickly approaching, but quickly going to put us in the rear view mirror.” Given the packed global cricket calendar, Turner said the Scorchers would not get too much time together in the lead-up but backed his side to hit the ground running against Sydney Sixers at Optus Stadium on December 14. “We’ve got guys all over the world at the moment. That’s just the modern way. We’ve got guys playing different formats of the game, but we know that one of our strengths has been our ability to shift between formats,” he said. “For a lot of guys, that’s playing for Western Australia and four-day cricket, other guys were prioritising white ball cricket, some guys are going to come from overseas. “We know that the lead-in as is often the case in franchise cricket, is condensed; we’ll have a week together, but we’re confident a lot of the planning has been done and we’ll be able to implement that quickly.” Turner said the Scorchers needed to lean into the ‘wild west’ theme by making full use of their home-ground advantage and the bouncy Perth wicket. “The wild west has been part of our brand for a number of years now, and I think its importance is only increasing, and it’s something the fans are really grabbing hold of,” he said. “A real competitive advantage for us, is the conditions we play in here in the west. We’re going to get a lot of opportunity to expose ourselves to both the Optus conditions and at the WACA so.” “To hit the ground running, to be able to play our first game at home on conditions that are really unique to us here in Perth, it’s a competitive advantage for up and we want to upskill ourselves as quickly as possible.”