“Dhawan is going to be in a plaster for a couple of weeks,” Kohli said, after India’s rain-abandoned fixture against New Zealand on June 13. “After that, we will assess where he stands. Hopefully, the injury heals quickly and he will be available for the latter half of our league games and semi-finals for sure.”

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“From that point of view, we want to hold him back, keep him here because he wants to play. I think that kind of mindset will help in healing the injury as well.”

Dhawan suffered an injury to his left thumb while batting against Australia, at The Oval, on June 9. Despite the blow, he continued his innings and ended with 117 in India’s 36-run win. He did not return to the field, with Ravindra Jadeja replacing him as substitute during Australia’s chase.

[caption id=”attachment_109331″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] Rishabh Pant has been called in as cover, although he won’t be officially added to the squad[/caption]

He has been sidelined for at least two weeks, with the management deciding to not name any replacements, although wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant has been called in as cover, without being officially added to the squad. Dhawan is set to miss his side’s next two games, against Pakistan and Afghanistan, on June 16 and 22 respectively.

“He wants to play. I think that kind of mindset will help in healing the injury as well as he really wants to play,” Kohli added.

India’s fielding coach, R Sridhar, further elaborated on Dhawan’s condition, stating that it will be a challenge for the 33-year-old to immediately reprise his role in the slips, more than it will be an issue with throwing, since he has been hit on his left hand, his non-throwing arm.

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“Once we assess him, probably on 10th or 12th day… it’s his bottom hand while batting. It’s not his dominant hand because he is a right-hander [while fielding]”.

“Throwing wouldn’t be a problem but definitely the impact while fielding and catching – he fields in the slips initially – could be an issue. We have to test him out with some lighter balls first and then gradually move on to the cricket ball. That will be a challenge.”