Australia's captain Ricky Ponting will not play in the fifth and final Ashes cricket test against England starting in Sydney on Monday.
The team says an x-ray shows Ponting's finger fracture had moved and he needs to start treatment immediately.
Ponting broke the little finger on his left hand during the third test in Perth, but played with discomfort in the fourth test in Melbourne, which England won to retain the Ashes and take a 2-1 lead into the final match.
After the loss, Ponting, who has faced calls to step down from the captaincy, said he was confident he would play in Sydney.
His omission has delayed the naming of the team the also out of form vice-captain Michael Clarke will lead in a test for the first time.
Meanwhile 78.5 percent of respondents to a poll in The Australian newspaper want
Ponting to go for good.
Former Australian captain Ian Chappell joined the chorus, saying the 36-year-old Tasmanian, who's had a dreadful series with the bat, is past his use-by date.
