Cullen dropped from Pura Cup squad

Dan Cullen's chances of becoming Australia's regular Test spinner after Shane Warne's retirement have taken a blow with South Australia dropping him from their Pura Cup squad. Cullen was 12th man in the Redbacks' loss to Victoria earlier this week but Cullen Bailey, the legspinner, and Nathan Adcock, who is primarily a batsman but also a handy offspinner, were preferred in the 13-man squad for the game against Queensland starting next Friday.

Cullen, who made his Test debut in Bangladesh last April, has found it hard to cement a place in the Redbacks' team in 2006-07 and has managed only five wickets at 60.40 from his three Pura Cup matches. Darren Lehmann, though not included in the Ford Ranger Cup side to take on Western Australia on Saturday, was named to captain the Pura Cup squad against Queensland after recovering from a hamstring injury. It was a rare piece of good news after a week in which South Australia's infighting made more headlines than their on-field efforts.

Mike Deare, the South Australian Cricket Association chief executive, addressed the players after he was quoted in the Sunday Mail as saying he was concerned about the squad's partying culture. "We have been aware that some of our players have been seen around nightclubs at three o'clock in the morning the day before they are travelling and that's just one example," Deare said.

The fitness of some players at training was also a concern and Deare said he had spoken with Lehmann and Wayne Phillips, the coach, about such issues. "You could call it a dressing down, you could call it a bollocking but we said to them we were pretty unhappy with what is happening and they are the leaders responsible for discipline in the team," he said.

But in a SACA statement Deare today appeared to do a backflip having spoken to the players. "I have made it clear to the squad that the SACA has enormous faith in their talent and ability to turn around the season," he said. "I acknowledged to the group that the SACA understands that any off-field behavioural issues were isolated cases and were addressed by the Redbacks leadership group directly with the individuals involved. The squad was also reassured that the constant improvement in their fitness levels and work ethic, particularly through such a tough season, have been recognised."

Pura Cup squad Jason Borgas, Tom Plant, Matthew Elliott, Daniel Harris, Mark Cosgrove, Darren Lehmann (capt), Ben Cameron, Nathan Adcock, Shane Deitz (wk), Ryan Harris, Cullen Bailey, Jason Gillespie, Paul Rofe.

Ford Ranger Cup squad Matthew Elliott, Daniel Harris, Ben Cameron, Mark Cosgrove, James Smith, Nathan Adcock, Simon Roberts, Ken Skewes, Graham Manou (capt, wk), Mark Cleary, Ryan Harris, Jason Gillespie, Dan Cullen.