Australia women’s cricketer Alyssa Healy confirmed that she suffered a severe dog bite to her right index finger on Saturday night. She further added that in the immediate aftermath of the accident she feared for her career, but is hopeful she will be able to make a full recovery although the timeline of that remains uncertain.
Healy was attempting to separate her two Staffordshire bull terrier puppies, Misty and Millie, when she sustained the injury, which has now ruled her out of the rest of the WBBL for the Sydney Sixers and maybe Australia's December tour to India.
She had surgery on Sunday morning and will have a clearer indication of the recovery time after another meeting with the surgeon on Thursday.
"I've got two puppy dogs who were having a rough and tumble, it got a little more than that and unfortunately got my hand in the wrong place at the wrong time. My right index finger took a bit of a battering. It was quite gory…the positive side of it is that the surgery all went well,” Healy was quoted by ESPNCricinfo.
According to the preliminary findings, there was no bone or tendon damage, which would have been more concerning.
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"That's probably the best news possible. There was an artery involved which probably made it look more like a crime scene than it needed to be, but the major important things that will take time in coming back weren't affected.
Won't lie, when I pulled my finger out initially, I thought I was in strife, but it's all gone smoothly at the moment. Think it will all just come down to function and whether I can continue to grip the bat the way I need to, or catch the ball, but from all reports, which is really early, is that it's all pretty positive,” Healy added.
Healy further said that she is feeling more positive about the prognosis.
"I'm not too bad about it. These things happen. Dane van Niekerk cut herself cutting an avocado with the Sixers, so we haven't had much luck with household accidents for the Sixers. I'm really optimistic about it. I'll take the opportunity to have a rest while I can. It's not ideal and I was looking forward to the WBBL and contributing significantly for the Sixers. I've been given a break now to do that to support them and get myself right, whether it's for the back end of the season or a big summer ahead,” she said.
Depending on Healy's recuperation timeframe, a new Australia captain may be required if she is unable to participate in the multiformat India tour in December. Meg Lanning has yet to confirm her availability for the trip, and Healy has served as her understudy this year.
