Australia have received a massive boost ahead of the four-match Test series against India starting next month with their star opener Usman Khawaja almost certain to be fit for the first Test which begins in Adelaide on December 6.
Khawaja had suffered a meniscal tear in his left knee at a training session during Day 3 of the second Test between Australia and Pakistan in Abu Dhabi last month. He was immediately carried off the field and had a surgery performed as soon as he returned to Australia. There were initial fears about Khawaja’s participation for the India series but the 31-year-old has revealed that he has recovered from the knee injury to a point that he should be back in the nets from next week.
“It’s going pretty well so far, just over two weeks, ran at 100 per cent yesterday on the treadmill, hopefully, run outside tomorrow, so progressing well so far,” Khawaja was quoted as saying by Fox Sports.
Khawaja had grinded out for a remarkable 141 in 302 balls last month in the first Test against Pakistan in Dubai in one of the greatest fourth innings seen in recent times. Set 462 to win in 140 overs, Australia battled out for a day and a half to secure a gritty draw. His absence was felt in the second test which the visitors lost by a whopping 373 runs as well as the ODI series that followed against South Africa going down 2-1.
With Steve Smith and David Warner still serving their bans, Khawaja’s return will be a shot in the arm for the Australians who are still reeling from the ball-tampering scandal that had rocked the nation in March.
The 31-year-old had earlier this month indicated that his recovery was running ahead of schedule. “My recovery is going really well so far. I’m trying to keep it cool, but it’s actually going really well,” he had said at the time.
“I feel like I’m a little bit ahead of where I should be. If I keep doing the little things right – looking after my body, being disciplined – hopefully that’ll transition to me coming back in time.”
Source : news18
