Optimism around Washington, Tilak as India build towards World Cup

Washington Sundar is on the road to recovery and should be ready for the T20 World Cup starting on February 7. The 26-year-old all-rounder, out of action since the first ODI against New Zealand in Baroda on January 11, has been undergoing rehab at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. The selection committee sources say there is no reason to believe that he won't be ready for the ICC event.

India begin their defence of the T20 World Cup in Mumbai, against USA, on the first day of the tournament.

After the ongoing T20I bilateral series against New Zealand, which concludes on January 31, the Indian team will assemble in Mumbai on February 3 and is in line to play a warm-up game against South Africa at the DY Patil Stadium on February 4. Whether Sundar will be ready for the game is not clear, but for now, the selectors are optimistic about his readiness for the World Cup.

While ruling out Sundar for the current T20I series, the BCCI had said, "The all-rounder reported an acute onset of discomfort in his left lower rib area while bowling during the first ODI against New Zealand at the BCA Stadium, Vadodara, on Sunday. He will undergo further scans, following which the BCCI Medical Team will seek expert opinion." He has been at the CoE since.

Meanwhile, there is a similar air of optimism surrounding Tilak Varma as well. The Hyderabad batter, sidelined after a minor surgery earlier this month, is expected to be available for the February 4 warm-up game. While giving an update on his fitness, the BCCI recently said, "The India batter Tilak Varma underwent surgery for an abdominal issue in Rajkot on Wednesday, 7 January.

"He was discharged from the hospital on Thursday morning and is scheduled to fly back to Hyderabad on Friday. He is currently stable and progressing well. Tilak will resume physical training and gradually return to skill-based activities once his symptoms have fully resolved and wound healing is satisfactory."

The selection committee also seems to back Sanju Samson despite the opener's lean patch and debate over his selection for the marquee event. The keeper-batter was picked for the World Cup ahead of Shubman Gill in the squad but he has not exactly inspired confidence. He has had underwhelming scores of 10, 6, 0 and 24 in the current series, but there are no plans to replace him. Ishan Kishan may pip him for the opener's role in the World Cup, but Samson's position in the squad is safe for now.

Gill, however, got strong backing from a former India captain. Mohammad Azharuddin said that Gill should have been in the Indian squad for the World Cup. "Shubman Gill should be there in the Indian T20 team. Shubman is an outstanding captain and player. He should be in the T20 team. It is India's bad luck that he is not. He is my favourite player, an outstanding all-format batsman."

World Cup squad: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (vc), Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Washington Sundar, Ishan Kishan (wk)