Mitchell Marsh's recovery slower than expected but should be fit to bowl in T20 World Cup 2024: Andrew McDonald

Australia head coach Andrew McDonald stated that star all-rounder Mitchell Marsh's recovery from a hamstring injury has taken more time to recover than what was initially expected. The Australian T20 captain suffered a hamstring tear while playing for Delhi Capitals in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL).

After playing just four games in the 17th edition of the cash-rich league, Marsh returned home to recuperate from his injury. McDonald expects the 32-year-old to be ready to bowl from the beginning of the T20 World Cup 2024, which is set to commence on June 2. Australia will play their opening encounter against Oman in Bridgetown, Barbados on June 6.

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"You probably won't see him bowl in the next couple of weeks here. It'll probably happen the week before we leave. And then he'll be able to ramp that up when we're over there. We'll be able to cherry-pick the moments during the tournament where he'll be useful with the ball. We've got some all-round depth in the squad, which gives us good coverage anyway," McDonald told reporters at Allan Border Field on Tuesday.

"[His recovery was] probably a little slower than expected on the back of the hamstring. But we've got plenty of time now that he has been ruled out the IPL. The first game is just short of a month away now. So ample time for him to get ready. But really positive to see the skipper on the park," he added.

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The former Australian all-rounder asserted that there has been no dearth of match practice for Marsh in the past couple of months. Also, the reigning ODI World Cup champions will be playing some practice games in the lead-up to the upcoming marquee event.

"No real concern about match fitness. We've got a couple of practice games when we get to Trinidad in the support period. So he'll likely get plenty of match opportunities. And if not, we'll be able to simulate those through practice, which our coaching staff are pretty good at," McDonald said.