Australia drop Hughes for 3rd Test against England

Birmingham, England:

Australia opening batsman Phillip Hughes announced on his Twitter page that he has been dropped for the third Ashes Test against England at Edgbaston, where there was a delayed start because of rain.

Hughes' message was sent before official team news was disclosed. He has struggled in the two Ashes Tests so far, scoring 36, 4 and 17 at Cardiff and Lord's. He also made seven and eight in the final warm-up match before the series began.

Hughes said: "Disappointed not to be on the field with the lads today, will be supporting the guys. Thanks for all the support."

Being dropped provides a turnaround in fortunes for Hughes after the 20-year-old opening batsman averaged 69 on the South Africa tour earlier this year where he made his debut _ and became the youngest player to score centuries in both innings of a Test.

The complete Australia team news has yet to be officially announced but bowler Stuart Clark was expected to be recalled.

The umpires were set to inspect the ground conditions at 1000 GMT, but 30 minutes earlier the rain came again.