Struggling Warner remains in Australia’s plans for WTC final

Ahmedabad: Australia opener David Warner will compete in the upcoming ODI series against India, having recovered from his elbow injury, coach Andrew McDonald confirmed on Tuesday. Warner struggled in the two Tests he played against India, scoring 26 runs from his three innings before being substituted out of the second match in 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’s recovered from his injury,” Australia head coach Andrew McDonald said here. McDonald said Warner also remains in the frame for the World Test Championship final against Rohit Sharma’s men in London in June. “At the moment Dave’s fully in our plans for the World Test Championship,” McDonald said of Warner, who has scored 8158 runs from 103 Tests at an average of 45.57. The 36-year-old has also scored 6007 runs from 141 ODIs at an average of 45.16. McDonald also confirmed that in-form opener Usman Khawaja, who made 180 in Australia’s first innings in the drawn fourth Test, has been cleared of structural damage to his lower leg, which he injured while fielding on the fourth day on Sunday. “The scans are positive so he gets some time to rest up and look forward to the WTC,” McDonald said of Khawaja. “There’ll be a bit of rehabilitation around that, but nothing that will keep him out for long.” PTI