Ready to Duke it out
Commonwealth Bank Bushrangers all-rounder John Hastings remains confident that his latest setback is merely a speed hump on his road to recovery.
Having missed the entire Australian summer after undergoing reconstructive shoulder surgery in October, the 26-year-old returned to hospital earlier this week to have his shoulder flushed out after experiencing some minor discomfort.
"Fitness wise, I'm feeling pretty good," Hastings said.
"It's a minor hiccup which should only set me back two or three weeks from where I was at. I thought I was flying two weeks ago.
"They flushed out the joint.
"It was nothing major, but they decided to go in and have a look, and it's exactly what they thought it was.
"Structurally it's all very sound, and they've told me this is pretty common."
Having been included in Australia's World Cup squad last year, Hastings conceded his stint on the sidelines had been difficult at times, but was hoping to make his return to competitive cricket during the off-season in the Emerging Players Tournament.
"It's been pretty frustrating sitting on the sidelines," Hastings said.
"I'd love to be out there giving the boys a hand."
Having trained steadily under the watchful eye of Bushrangers strength and condition coach David Bailey, including running sprints at the Junction Oval earlier this month during Victoria's second XI clash with Sri Lanka, Hastings has commenced batting against a ball machine and will slowly build up to a 20-ball bowling program as his recovery progresses.
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