India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav's recovery is on track, and there are no doubts about his availability for the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh next month. Hindustan Times has learnt that the National Cricket Academy (NCA) medical staff and Surya himself are happy with his progress.

"Surya's recovery is going well. He is almost 100 per cent and he knows it," said a BCCI source who met Surya on the sidelines of the Duleep Trophy match between India A and India B at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

Suryakumar was supposed to turn up for India C in the first round of the Duleep Trophy against India D in Anantapur, which is about four hours away from Bengaluru but an injury ruled him out of that fixture. He was sent to the NCA, where the medical team kept a close watch on his progress.

Surya sprained his right thumb while fielding in a Buchi Babu Invitational tournament against TNCA XI on day 3 of the match. As a precautionary measure, he did not bat in the second innings.

"The BCCI Medical Team is continuing to assess his injury, and a further evaluation next week will determine his availability for the second round," the BCCI said in an official press release on September 4, confirming his unavailability for the first-round fixture.

Surya was present at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on all days of the India A vs India B fixture. He had a lengthy chat with a few of his India teammates and seemed in a jovial mood on Sunday.

As things stand now, Surya is likely to feature in the latter half of the Duleep Trophy, but whether it will be from the second round, which starts on Thursday (September 12), is still unclear. Notably, the BCCI had not named any replacements for Surya in the India C squad, expecting his availability from the second round itself.

Duleep Trophy important for Surya's Test hopes

If Surya does play India C's next match against India B, then it will be his first red-ball fixture in more than 14 months. Incidentally, his last red-ball match was also in the Duleep Trophy last year.

The ongoing Duleep Trophy is extremely crucial for Surya's Test hopes. Although a great T20I player, Surya hasn't quite found his footing in other formats. He has been given ample opportunities in ODIs, but an average of 25 after 35 innings has not helped his case.

As far as red-ball cricket is concerned, he was given his Test cap during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia last year but an injury ruled him out of the series after just one Test.

Meanwhile, a host of changes are expected in the Duleep Trophy squads as all Indian Test cricketers, barring Sarfaraz Khan, are set to leave for Chennai to take part in the preparatory camp starting September 12. The home season starts with a two-match Test series against Bangladesh on September 19.

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