Broad in doubt for Boxing Day Test

Stuart Broad is a doubt for the Boxing Day Test after being struck on the right foot by a Mitchell Johnson yorker on the third day at the WACA.

Broad may yet bat in England's second innings if there appears any chance they can save the Test but he will not bowl again in Perth and his availability for the rest of the series will depend on how his foot recovers over the next week and a half.

Although Broad was unable to say whether there was a fracture, he said "something showed up" when his foot was x-rayed. Broad wore a moon boot on his foot and used crutches to make his way to a press conference after the third day's play, having earlier been sent to hospital following his dismissal lbw to a Johnson yorker that struck him on the top of the foot.

"I got hit by a full ball from Mitch when he got me out and it immediately hurt, so I came into the changing room and got some ice on it," Broad said. "I was desperate to get out there and bowl, so I had to try it out in the nets to see how we went.

"Normally with a bruise you get a bit of blood to it when you get going and the pain decreases. It actually increased quite a bit in the nets. I wanted to go out and have a spell but the doc said I had to go for an x-ray.

"Something showed up but it was a bit inconclusive, so I had to have an MRI, which was quite frustrating because I wanted to get back to the ground and we're just waiting on those results back from England now. Treatment wise it's a lot of ice, elevation, rest.

"I'm desperate to play a part in the rest of this Ashes series. I won't be bowling tomorrow or anything, but there's a bit of a break between this Test and the next and I'm desperate to be there."

When asked if it was a fracture that had shown up on the x-ray, Broad said he was uncertain but he believed that even if there was a crack of some kind in the bone there remained a chance he could play a further part in the series.

"I'm not 100% sure. It's all gobbledegook to me, to be honest, it all went over my head," Broad said. "I just know what the treatment is to get myself right. But at the end of the day, even if there is a small crack there and my symptoms aren't painful, I see no reason why I can't continue to play. I've got 10 days until Boxing Day. Even if there is a small crack I see no reason why I can't get myself back in the frame."

Although Broad will not bowl at the WACA, he said he would bat if the team needed him to help keep the Ashes series alive but such a decision would be dependent on how close England were to saving or winning the match. Such forecasts seemed optimistic at stumps on day three, with England 369 behind and Australia still seven second-innings wickets still in hand.

"It's pretty much dependent on the state of the game, I think, but I'll give it a go. It's a bit sore to weight-bear at the minute, but I'll certainly bat if the team requires it," Broad said. "It depends how many overs are left and how we've gone, but that decision will be made hopefully not tomorrow, hopefully the next day."

Broad has been England's leading wicket taker so far in the series, having collected 14 at 25.21, and he is the only England bowler to have collected a five-for so far in the Ashes. Only Johnson, with 19, has more victims for either side.