Oz pacer Harris undergoes revolutionary knee treatment to revive Ashes hopes

MELBOURNE - Injured Australian fast bowler Ryan Harris is now hoping to make an Ashes comeback after revealing how revolutionary fluid injections have saved his arthritic knee.

Harris, 31, visited Melbourne surgeon David Young in early October fearing his right knee almost devoid of cartilage meant retirement was on the cards, with confinement to limited-overs ranks the next option.

But he has undergone a series of Synvisc injections into the knee - providing critical, artificial padding in the joint. The procedure extended retired Adelaide Crows AFL legend Andrew McLeod’s career by up to five years, Fox Sports reports.

“I went and saw the surgeon not knowing what the future held,” said Harris, who limped out of Australia’s Test series against Pakistan in England this winter requiring surgery on his right knee surgery.

“I was really fearing the worst. Alex Kountouris the Cricket Australia physio picked me up in Melbourne and I told him how worried I was. I was a little bit scared I guess about what he the surgeon was going to say,” said Haris.

Harris aggravated the knee injury while taking 5-42 in his Brisbane grade cricket return with Toombul in September, but he is confident the cutting edge injections will work.

“I was getting sharp pains on the outside of my knee walking around, but haven’t got them now,” he said.

“I have had two Synvisc injections, which gives protection to the bone.

“My surgeon has been involved in a lot of AFL football and said a lot of guys have had Synvisc injections and played on.

“He was positive and left me thinking I could still play for another three of four years.”

Harris said he is haunted by the thought of leaving Test ranks with just two appearances and concentrating on the shorter formats.

“I am only 31, not ready to retire, love playing first-class cricket and want to play Test cricket,” he said. (ANI)