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Hussey admits he could miss first two WCup matches

Source:PTI
February 06, 2011 18:32 IST

Injured Australian batsman Mike Hussey is hopeful that he will make the bus for the World Cup but admitted that he will have to miss the side's opening two matches in the mega event starting February 19.

Hussey will find out on Tuesday if he is fit enough to remain in Australia's 15-man World Cup squad after undergoing hamstring surgery last month.

"I have 48 hours until I find out whether I'll be flying out with the Australian team for World Cup. The boys fly out on Wednesday and I'm eager to be there with them. I'm confident I'll be on that plane," Hussey wrote in a column for Perth's Sunday Times.

"I will have a test on my hamstring in Melbourne tomorrow, with a final decision made on Tuesday. Looking at the World Cup schedule, I believe I've got plenty of time to make sure I'm 100 per cent fit; perhaps not for the first or second game; but for third match against Sri Lanka on March 5," he said.

Australia play Zimbabwe on February 21 in Ahmedabad and New Zealand on February 25 in Nagpur in their first two matches before taking on Sri Lanka on March 5 in Colombo.

The left-hander ripped his hamstring in the opening game of the seven-match ODI series against England in Melbourne on January 16 and only started jogging for the first time on Thursday.

To speed up his recovery, Hussey avoided using crutches after his operation and pushed himself hard once he was given the all clear.

"It has been 19 days since the operation and I'm smoothly jogging down the road to full recovery, ahead of schedule. My rehabilitation has been going extremely well," he said.

"I started jogging last Thursday, which was ahead of schedule. It's been good to see such swift progress. I got through the sessions without discomfort," he added.

Hussey is just one of a number of fitness concerns for Australia ahead of the tournament in the sub-continent where they will be aiming for a fourth consecutive title.

Captain Ricky Ponting has just returned to training after the broken finger he suffered during the Ashes while Nathan Hauritz dislocated his shoulder during the second ODI at Hobart.

Shaun Marsh, who replaced Hussey in the current One-Day squad, has suffered a hamstring strain while Xavier Doherty has a back problem and Steve Smith injured his hip at Sydney.

There is also concern over Brett Lee's who only had a light training session at the WACA here yesterday, apparently on his elbow.

Source: PTI
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