MacGill has fitness concerns

Stuart MacGill © Getty Images

An overweight and underperforming Stuart MacGill has been told to shape up by Australia coach Tim Nielsen.

The leg-spinner, who served as Shane Warne's understudy for the best part of a decade, struggled as Australia wrapped up a 2-0 series win over Sri Lanka in Tasmania on Tuesday.

MacGill, 36, has come under fire for his lack of fitness and ballooning weight since he took the unflattering figures of 1-102 from 20 overs in the tourists' second innings.

Former skipper Steve Waugh said MacGill was unfit for Test cricket and Nielsen did not shy away from the issue on Wednesday.

"He realises he has got some work to do physically to get himself up to a level that will allow him to play back-to-back Test matches and to fill the role that we need him to do," Nielsen said of MacGill.

"Sometimes we will need him to bowl big blocks of overs on end."

MacGill is vying for a spot with Brad Hogg © Getty Images

When asked if MacGill was possibly playing for his career over the next month, Nielsen replied: "That goes without saying.

"We do play back-to-back Test matches all summer and if you can't physically cope - and we are not just talking about Stuart MacGill but any player - then there is no way they will give themselves the best chance of executing their skills to the level they need to be consistently successful."

His poor performance could not have come at a worse time considering MacGill only just got the nod for the series against Sri Lanka ahead of in-form Western Australian 'chinaman' bowler Brad Hogg, who is also a far superior batsman and fielder to MacGill.

Nielsen said the next month ahead of Australia's next Test engagement - the much-anticipated first Test of a four-Test series against India on Boxing Day - would be crucial for MacGill.

MacGill has two Pura Cup games - against Victoria at the MCG starting on Friday week and then against Queensland in Brisbane - to prove he is still Australia's number one spinner in the post-Warne era.

Meanwhile, Nielsen said star all-rounder Andrew Symonds has escaped serious damage from the ankle injury that prevented him from bowling or fielding during the Hobart Test.

"It (the scans of his ankle) was pretty positive - it's just a sprained ankle but he can't field or bowl with it at the moment."