Australian assistant coach Daniel Vettori has defended the team’s decision not to declare after India likely put a result out of reach in the third Test at the Gabba.

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The Indian tail wagged enough to avoid the follow-on late on day four, meaning the Aussies will have to bat once they take the final wicket early on day five, before having a go at bowling out the tourists.

It appears unlikely, and a draw would leave the series level at 1-1 heading into the Boxing Day Test, meaning Australia could not win back the Border-Gavaskar Trophy if it loses once more this summer.

The decision not to declare early on day three, especially after Alex Carey and Nathan Lyon went at a snail’s pace during some rare sunlight, has come in for criticism but Vettori argued they didn’t want to be short on runs.

“We always acknowledged that first-innings runs were going to be vitally important in this game,” Vettori told reporters at stumps.

“You don’t really want to plan for weather, because we’ve seen on these days where it can blow past and you can get on with things, and then it can settle in.

“The conversation was mainly around, let’s make the most of this first innings, trust this very good bowling unit to be able to deliver on this wicket, like they did today.

“Unfortunately, just the amount of time that’s been lost from the game has made it difficult.”

Meanwhile Scott Boland is a near-certainty to play in his home Test after fellow seamer Josh Hazlewood sustained a calf strain early on day four.

The Australian quick was sent for scans after damaging his right calf during warm-ups on Tuesday morning, later ruled out of the remainder of the match.

“(Hazlewood) is likely to miss the remainder of the Test series,” Cricket Australia confirmed in a statement.

“A squad replacement will be made in due course.”

The injury-prone Hazlewood, who flew home from last year’s Border-Gavaskar Trophy in India with an Achilles problem, also missed last week’s pink-ball Test in Adelaide due to a minor side complaint.

“He’s pretty despondent,” Vettori told reporters.

“He felt it in warm-ups this morning and gave it a good crack.

“It’s just unfortunate for him to come back and put so much effort in after another injury with the side strain from the last Test.

“And then to pick up a calf injury here, particularly considering the circumstances, was really tough on him.”

Hazlewood’s setback left Australia with one less bowler at their disposal for the rain-affected Gabba contest, which is edging closer towards a stalemate courtesy of Brisbane’s miserable weather and India’s lower-order fightback.

The tourists, having successfully avoided the follow-on, are 9-252 at stumps, still trailing by 193 runs.

Although Hazlewood’s absence was sorely felt, the frequent rain delays permitted Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc to bowl longer spells than usual on Tuesday.

“(Hazlewood’s) one of the best bowlers in the world, so obviously it affects the team,” Vettori continued.

“The weather … allowed Mitch (Starc) and Patty (Cummins) to come back on multiple occasions, whereas if we’d played the full 90 overs, it would have been a much tougher day to manage.

“That alleviated a bit of the concern, but it’s always a tough one with a world-class bowler being out.”

Hazlewood’s injury has opened the door for Boland’s return to the Test side in front of a home crowd at the MCG, the same venue where he made his famous debut three years ago.

The 35-year-old, who claimed five wickets during the Adelaide Test, averages 13.54 with the ball on home soil, but rarely gets opportunities in the national side due to the ‘big three’. The Victorian carried drinks during last summer’s Boxing Day Test against Pakistan, with chants of ‘We want Boland’ erupting from Bay 13.

Australian coach Andrew McDonald was seen talking to Boland after Hazlewood left the field on Tuesday morning.

“That would be the logical thing to conclude,” Vettori responded when asked if Boland would play the fourth Test in Melbourne.

“Boland speaks for himself. The way he bowled in Adelaide, the way that he’s consistently been the backup seamer, and every single time he’s been asked to step up, particularly in Australia, he’s been outstanding.”

Vettori also hinted that Starc and Cummins could play all five Tests against India this summer due to their light workloads; the Adelaide match wrapped up in less than seven sessions, while the pace duo have only bowled 24 and 21 overs respectively in Brisbane this week.

“They’re still at the relative number (of overs) that we expect through this amount of Test matches,” Vettori said.

“Because of the (rain) breaks, it didn’t feel like we pushed them too hard.

“It was a tricky situation at the end there where the ball was incredibly soft and getting wet. To try and push them just that little bit longer to try and get that last wicket, that’s the only time where we felt they were slightly extended.

“But so far, it feels like the norm.”