The World Cup fever has finally begun to showcase itself once the long-awaited fixture list for the marquee tournament was finally disclosed on the 27th of June. While England will be looking to defend their crown, the likes of Australia, India, and New Zealand will be the frontrunners to usurp the English from their throne. With less than 100 days left for the World Cup to begin, every team will slowly and steadily ramp up their preparation so that they can put on a show on the biggest cricket stage of them all.
These upcoming three months will also be an opportunity for the sides to either bring in new players or welcome their key players who have been out for quite a while due to illness, injury, or any other unspecified reasons. Our focus on this article is about the latter group, where we will be looking at those players who could potentially make a return to this world cup after a long gap.
2023 CWC Update: Here’s six players who could potentially make a much-awaited return to the showpiece event in October-
1. Kane Williamson
The New Zealand skipper was the leading run getter in the 2019 edition of the tournament as his side faltered on the final hurdle in the most unluckiest way possible. He was expected to lead his side one step further this World Cup. However, a tear to his ACL on the opening day of this year’s IPL had put his participation in threat. But a recent update with regards to his health has sent a potential ray of hope to the Kiwi fans and his teammates.
Williamson said that his recovery has been progressing nicely and that he is taking things day-to-day. And he has dropped a hint that he could be fit before the 2023 CWC as well. The Kiwis will desperately hope that this is the case because his batting is something that is virtually irreplaceable.
2. Jasprit Bumrah
The Indian pace bowling spearhead has been absent from any form of cricket since last September when he injured his back, something which worsened in his initial stages of recovery leading to a stress fracture of the lower back. This meant that Bumrah was missed in all the major events that took place in that time frame- the Asia Cup, the T20 World Cup, the BGT Test Series, and finally the World Test Championship Finals.
All this while his recovery and rehabilitation have been closely supervised and kept under wraps, with only a select few in the NCA aware of the developments. But recent news have sent a wave of excitement around the Indian faithful where it was told that Bumrah has begun bowling in the NCA and has gradually been increasing his bowling workload, reportedly bowling close to 7 overs every day. He is expected to play the Ireland series after which a final call will be taken on his participation in the World Cup, something which looks extremely positive currently.
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3. Jofra Archer
The English Pyro had announced himself in the 2019 World Cup with a searing exhibition of pace and bounce, and also holding his nerve in the super over of the finals. He was one of England’s leading wicket takers in the tournament and had also got fast tracked into the Ashes side courtesy of his performances there. However, since that high it’s not been smooth sailing for the speedster.
He suffered from a series of elbow and back injuries which put him out of the game for close to 2 years. It was in January of 2023 that he made a return to competitive cricket, but he suffered another elbow injury while playing in the IPL, leading to him being ruled out of the IPL as well as the ongoing Ashes series. England have been monitoring his health and recovery every step of the way so that he is fit for the World Cup as they will need his pace and bounce if they want to defend their crown.
4. Rishabh Pant
The entire nation held its breath and offered prayers across the country to pray for the health and safety of Rishabh Pant who met with a potentially life threatening road accident on the 31st of December while going to meet his mother.
While he emerged safely out of the car thanks to the man above, he suffered a litany of injuries which included abrasions to his face and back, an ankle injury and a torn ACL to compound it all. It felt like it was going to be an accident that could prematurely end the career of India’s newest sensation.
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However, his resilience and perseverance meant that Pant made a great recovery and in his recent posts along with videos from the NCA show him walking without any support with fluency, and he has also begun his strength and conditioning training in earnest as well.
R Ashwin did give the entire nation a spoiler/cliffhanger in one of his recent YouTube videos that Rishabh Pant could very well make a return as quickly as this World Cup. While his health is of utmost importance, it would be a beautiful story if he does make a return in the World Cup. Let’s hope he does!!
5. Bhanuka Rajapaksa
The Sri Lanka dasher was one of the key cogs in the wheel in their victorious run to the Asia Cup last year with his performance at number 4. At the start of the year, he personally asked the SLC board to grant him some time off from the ODI format due to undisclosed personal reasons.
While it is unknown that when will he make himself available for selection ahead, the fact that Sri Lanka have booked their place in the World Cup courtesy of their excellent performance in the qualifier tournament will certainly pique his interest. With the Lanka batsmen woefully out of form and the likes of Kusal Mendis out of rhythm since a prolonged period of time, the path is pretty clear for Rajapaksa to go ahead and make his return in the format.
Image Credits: Cricket Addictor
6. Shreyas Iyer
The India middle order batsman has recently been one of India’s better players of spin and had been on a good run of form as well. However, what started off as back pain in the middle of the Ahmedabad test vs Australia that prevented him to bat in that test later culminated in another back injury for him, which was also one of the reasons why he missed the first test of the series in Nagpur.
He was initially expected to return for the second half of the IPL, but a surgery put paid on those plans. His slow recovery also meant that he missed the WTC final as well. However, he has also stepped up his recovery regime at the NCA and will be eagerly hoping to make an appearance at the home World Cup come October.
