Hip injury puts Ellyse Perry in doubt for Australia's must-win T20 World Cup group decider

The star allrounder picked up the damage during Australia's win over Bangladesh and did not train with the team on the eve of Monday's fixture

• Women's T20 World Cup hub
• Healy stars as Australia continue revival

Australia star Ellyse Perry is an injury concern ahead of the team's vital T20 World Cup clash with New Zealand in Melbourne on Monday.

A hip knock picked up in the field during her side's 86-run win over Bangladesh on Thursday has forced the 29-year-old out of a team training session on the eve of the must-win fixture.

Instead, Perry took part in a half-hour batting session at the Junction Oval in preparation for the game, two days after coach Matthew Mott admitted the niggle may put her in doubt for Monday's action.

Captain Meg Lanning has now confirmed the uncertainty around the situation, insisting that the strength in depth of her 15-woman squad can adequately cover as Australia face a premature exit from their home tournament should they fail to beat their Antipodean rivals.

"We'll give her every chance to play tomorrow but we won't be able to make a call on that until tomorrow," Lanning commented.

"She's the ultimate professional, she's doing everything she can to get herself up.

"I'm confident, and given who the player is, she's showed in the past she's extremely resilient and able to play through things.

"It would change the dynamic of the team obviously, when you lose a world-class player like her.

"But I said at the start of the tournament that we have 15 players who I felt could play a role at any point and that hasn't changed.

"If Ellyse is unable to play, we feel we've got people who can come in and play a role and do really well."

Though she has managed just one wicket and five runs through Australia's Group A campaign thus far, Perry remains at the top of the ICC's rankings for T20 allrounders and has a rich pedigree at the tournament, helping Australia to four titles in six editions.

The Australian is also the most capped player in the tournament's history, playing 35 fixtures since appearing in the inaugural edition in 2009 and collecting a team-best 37 wickets to date.

Subscribe to The Cricketer for exclusive content every day: The inside track on England's Test tour with George Dobell in Pakistan, award-winning analysis, breaking news and interviews and the only place for in-depth county coverage all year round. Plus: An ad-free app experience at your fingertips. Subscribe to thecricketer.com today for just £1.