Warner remains in plans for WTC final: McDonald

AHMEDABAD: Australia opener David Warner will compete in the upcoming ODI series against India, having recovered from his elbow injury, head coach Andrew McDonald confirmed on Tuesday. Warner struggled in the two Tests he played against India, scoring 26 runs from three innings before being substituted out of the second match in New Delhi due to concussion. He then returned home to recover from a hairline fracture in his elbow. “He (Warner) is coming back [to India] for the one day series, he has recovered from his injury,” McDonald said here.

McDonald also said that Warner is in the frame for the World Test Championship final against Rohit Sharma’s India in London in June.

“At the moment, Dave is fully in our plans for the World Test Championship,” McDonald said of Warner, who has scored 8,158 runs from 103 Tests at an average of 45.58.

McDonald also confirmed that in-form opener Usman Khawaja, who made 180 in Australia’s first innings in the drawn fourth Test here, has been cleared of structural damage to his lower leg which he injured while fielding on the penultimate day (Sunday). “The scans are pretty positive … so he (Khawaja) gets some time to rest up now and look forward to the World Test Championship [final],” McDonald said.

“I am sure that there will be a bit of rehabilitation around that, but at this stage nothing structural or anything that will keep him out for long.”