Cummins Shield cameo ruled out

Pat Cummins will not make a cameo appearance in New South Wales' Sheffield Shield match against Queensland and faces a cloudy immediate future as his sore back is examined further.

Initial scans on Cummins' back proved inconclusive, and he is now scheduled to visit Melbourne tomorrow for further consultation with medical experts after he returned home from the Champions League Twenty20 with the niggle.

There had been a chance of him slotting in to the New South Wales side for the last day of their Shield match, which starts on Friday, as a replacement for one of the state's Test players, but his injury has taken that possibility off the table. Cummins, 19, has not played a first-class match since his Test debut last November and his chances of being involved in Australia's Test summer will hinge on the outcome of his examinations.

Brad Haddin will also be on the sidelines for this week's match after it was decided that his thumb injury, picked up during the Champions League in South Africa, had not fully recovered. A specialist diagnosed residual swelling and infection but it was expected Haddin would be available for the next round of Shield and Ryobi Cup matches.

Peter Nevill will take the gloves against Queensland and David Dawson has also been included in the squad. The Blues also confirmed that Steven Smith and Moises Henriques, who are part of the Australia A match against South Africa due to finish in Sydney on Sunday, would fly to Brisbane after that game and would be available as replacements for the final day of the Shield game.

Sean Abbott will also be on standby for replacement duties, as will the nominated 12th man. New South Wales could lose Michael Clarke, Shane Watson, David Warner and Mitchell Starc on the final day of the game as they may be required to join the national squad in preparation for the first Test.