Axed Test Opener Suffers Concussion Blow in Shield Return

Jake Weatherald enduring a nightmare return to Sheffield Shield action has hit a new low after the discarded Australian opener was ruled out of South Australia's season opener against Victoria due to concussion.

The 31-year-old batter was dropped following Australia's shock Test defeat to Bangladesh in Darwin back in August, setting up a difficult path back to the national squad.

His first day of the domestic season in Melbourne proved torrid, as he dropped a catch and edged behind off Victorian debutant Harry Hoekstra for a duck late in the afternoon.

The Redbacks confirmed before the start of Day 2 that a head knock sustained during the opening session was the direct cause of the concussion that sidelined him for the remainder of the fixture.

Weatherald slid headlong into the Junction Oval boundary fence in an unsuccessful attempt to stop an Ollie Peake boundary in the 24th over.

Although he managed to play out the rest of the day's action, the batter sustained a delayed concussion as a consequence of the forceful collision.

Former New South Wales state batter Matthew Gilkes was subsequently called into the team as a designated concussion replacement.

However, the substitute will not be permitted to bat in the first innings because Weatherald had already been dismissed before the replacement was officially activated.