Star India batter may return for Ireland series, other doubtful for World Cup - BCCI official reveals

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The World Cup 2023 is just over three months away. The schedule was released earlier this week and it is set to start from October 5 in India.

The hosts India will commence their journey with a crucial match against Australia at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on October 8.

Ahead of the World Cup, injury issues have ravaged the Indian team. Several players have been sidelined in tandems over the last few months.

It seems things are getting in line for India finally, with Jasprit Bumrah increasingly likely to make a return to the team by next month. And the same goes for KL Rahul.

There's a positivity about KL Rahul's availability and the Indian wicketkeeper-batter is likely to get fit ahead of the World Cup. A BCCI official shed light on Rahul's fitness recently, which is encouraging for the Indian team.

"Rahul's recovery is going well. He should be fit in a month or so. Return from surgery is always tricky and he is a very important player for World Cup," the official told Inside Sport.

Rahul injured his groin midway through the IPL 2023 and travelled to England for surgery. And according to the official, if he recovers well, the player may be available for the Ireland T20I series.

But things are looking bleak for Shreyas Iyer. The batter who has been a mainstay for India in ODI format, had a back injury which ruled him out since March. The player is undergoing rehabilitation at NCA but is still said to have troubling issues.

"Iyer's progress is slow but we are still hopeful that he will recover by World Cup. But at this moment, it's not a certainty with Iyer," the official added.

Iyer missing will be a big blow for Team India. The batter scored the most amount of runs in ODIs for India last year and his untimely injury can be a massive setback.

Elsewhere, Rishabh Pant is almost certain to be not fit for the World Cup. it may hand opportunities to Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan for a spot in the World Cup team. Both Kishan and Samson were picked for the West Indies ODIs which follow the two Tests starting from July 11.