World Cup 2019: Warner fit to face Afghanistan, confirms Australia captain Finch
David Warner had been an injury doubt for Australia ahead of its Cricket World Cup opener against Afghanistan, but he will be fit to play.
Published : May 31, 2019 21:02 IST
David Warner has overcome a glute problem and will be fit to open the batting for Australia against Afghanistan, Aaron Finch has confirmed.
Warner, who will make his first official Australia appearance in over a year following a 12-month ban for his role in a ball-tampering scandal, sustained the injury in training on Wednesday.
Coach Justin Langer confirmed on Thursday that Warner would undergo a fitness test prior to another assessment on Friday, adding that the 32-year-old would not be risked if he was not fully fit.
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However, at a news conference the day before Australia's opening game, skipper Finch said: "Davey's fine, he'll play tomorrow [Saturday]."
Warner will replace Usman Khawaja as Finch's partner at the top of the order in Bristol. A late decision is set to be made on whether Khawaja or Shaun Marsh will bat at three.
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"Dave and I have had a great partnership over the years. That was a pretty key part of our 2015 World Cup win," explained Finch.
"Whichever way we decided to go with that, it didn't faze me either way. Davey's destructiveness in the powerplay is a huge reason why he's one of the best players in the world. When he gets in he can be so dominant.
"Usman or Shaun, whichever we go at three - Usman's the number three batter in Test cricket so there's no issues around whether he can do it. Shaun was very successful when he's done it over the last 12-18 months.
"We've got some great options there and we'll sit down this afternoon and nut that out."