Seamer Atkinson Compounds the English team's Injury Worries.
'Serious blow' for the English camp after Atkinson leaves the field suffering a hamstring problem.
The pace bowler increased England's injury problems when he left the playing area on the second morning of the Boxing Day Test in the Ashes series.
The pace bowler felt a problem in his hamstring after the final ball in his spell on Saturday.
Team management reported Atkinson had experienced "tightness" and was to take time away from the action in order to be assessed "over the next few hours".
The concluding match in this Ashes battle at the SCG gets underway this coming Sunday.
The English side has already lost strike bowlers Mark Wood to a knee injury and Jofra Archer with an abdominal strain during this series.
Matthew Fisher was brought into the squad as injury reinforcement.
Atkinson struggled in the opening two Tests, taking just a handful of scalps.
He was dropped from the previous Test, before being recalled for the Melbourne Test in the playing XI.
Surrey's Atkinson improved at the MCG, bagging two scalps during the host's first knock, then making 28 while batting among just a trio of English batsmen who passed ten runs.
Post a single over late on the first day, he resumed for the second day's play and removed Scott Boland taken by the wicketkeeper.
Unfortunately, at the end of his spell, he bowled a variation to the batsman and promptly felt at his leg.
Atkinson was recalled for the Melbourne match having missed of the third.
