Mumbai: India’s left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan is a doubtful starter for the four-match Test series against Australia since he has been advised three weeks’ rest for a calf injury and will also miss the Irani Cup match against Rest of India.
The first Test against Australia is scheduled to start from February 22 in Chennai.
Zaheer was, on Wednesday, left out of the 15-member Mumbai squad after he failed to recover from the calf injury that he picked up during the Ranji Trophy match against Gujarat.
Zaheer was dropped from the Test squad due to poor form after the third Test against England in Kolkata last month.
It was the first time Zaheer was dropped from the Test side since his phenomenal return to the team in 2006-07.
He had taken 15 wickets in eight Tests in 2012 and during the first three Tests against England he managed just four.
He was also left out of the subsequent ODI series against Pakistan and England.
In the Ranji Trophy, Zaheer took a five-wicket haul in Mumbai’s thrilling win against Madhya Pradesh. But in the next match against Gujarat that he led, he didn’t bowl in the second innings. The injury also ruled him out of the knockout stages as Mumbai went to lift the title for the 40th time.
After Chennai, the India-Australia series moves on to Hyderabed for the second Test, on March 2-6.
Mohali (March 14-18) and New Delhi (March 22-26) will hold the third and fourth Tests, respectively.
Warner fractures thumb
Meanwhile, Australia will announce their cricket squad for next month’s much-anticipated Test tour of India in Perth on Thursday.
“The Australian Test squad for the approaching VB Tour of India will be named tomorrow in Perth by Cricket Australia National Selector John Inverarity,” CA said in a statement.
The Aussies, however, received some bad news on Wednesday when dashing opener David Warner suffered a fracture on his thumb while training, putting a question mark on his availability for the Test tour of India.
Just a day before the announcement of the squad for the four-match Test series against India, Warner was struck by a Mitchell Johnson delivery in the lively WACA nets ahead of the home ODI series against the West Indies.
Warner was seen in obvious pain after copping the blow, but reports said the scans cleared him of a serious fracture.
“David Warner was struck on the left thumb by Mitchell Johnson in the nets,” Australian team physio Kevin Sims said.
“While the fracture is very minor, it is not worth taking any risks.
“The injury will keep him out of at least the next two matches against the West Indies.
“We’ll assess how he is progressing after that to determine his availability for the remainder of the series,” he added.
Australia play a five-match ODI series against the West Indies from February 1-10.
Warner has barely three weeks left to recover if he has to board the flight for India for the four-Test series, starting on February 22 in Chennai.
The Australian selectors may pick Warner when the Test squad is announced, besides also naming a standby batsman in case he fails to recover in time.
Should Warner miss the tour of India, it would allow fit-again all-rounder Shane Watson to return to his favoured opening slot.
Watson has been riddled by injuries over the past few years and is now keen to return to the Test arena purely as a batsman in order to avoid any more niggles.
Warner, one of the most explosive hitters in world cricket, has averaged 44.50 from 15 Tests, 30.37 from 38 ODIs and 28.71 from 44 T20Is. (Agencies)