Smith, Finch on road to recovery for ICC T20 World Cup

Sydney, Aug 18 (IANS) Top Australian batsmen Steve Smith and Aaron Finch could be seen in action in the ICC T20 World Cup to be held in the UAE and Oman in October-November after showing quick recovery from the injuries they suffered earlier this year.

While Smith, who is recovering from an elbow injury suffered earlier this year during the IPL, has started batting in the nets at the New South Wales training ground, Finch, the Australian limited-overs captain, who is currently recovering from a knee surgery, is also optimistic about his chances of playing in the ICC T20 World Cup.

Smith, who had to miss the recent West Indies and Bangladesh tours due to a left elbow injury, had earlier said that he would like to prioritise the Ashes over the T20 World Cup if he was forced into choosing. But, now it seems he might want to play in the T20 World Cup following reports that he is already spending time on the wicket at NSW.

"It (rehab) seems to be going really well (for Smith). I know that he's been building up his batting time over the last couple of weeks -- I know that would have been difficult to have a time limit on his net times," Finch told cricket.com.au on Wednesday.

"From all reports he's been really strict with that, making sure he doesn't overdo his elbow so it hinders his rehab. He's going really well. The last time I spoke to him he wasn't having any pain batting so that was a real positive. He's going to be such an important part of our campaign," added Finch.

Finch is also confident about his own recovery from the knee surgery he underwent recently following an injury during the West Indies tour, and being able to play in the T20 World Cup.

"I'm confident of that (being fit for the World Cup). It will be come down to pretty minimal match practice which I think being older and being around for quite a while plays into my hands a bit, having (previously recovered from) some injuries where you don't have a lot of lead time into a series.

"I think that will help me. The surgery went as well as it could have and I'm walking around with no pain, which is the most important thing at this stage."

Australia are expected to name their World Cup squad later this week.