Australia received a massive boost in their quest to conquer Sri Lanka at their home with the left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann cleared of his right thumb injury ahead of the away two-match Test series starting later this week. Kuhnemann was among the doubtful starters for the series, with the stand-in captain Steve Smith also suffering an injury scare in the lead-up to the last series of this WTC cycle.

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The left-arm spinner, who made his Test debut during the away BGT two years ago, fractured the thumb of his non-bowling hand during Brisbane Heat’s Big Bash League clash last week, undergoing surgery for the same.

This injury also forced him to miss Australia’s ICC training camp at the ICC academy in Dubai, and instead, he stayed back to allow healing to his injured thumb. The spinner will link up with the touring Australian team in Sri Lanka, with the remainder of the squad leaving from Dubai on Friday (Jan 24).

Meanwhile, Kuhnemann has since resumed bowling and was in action at the Allan Border Field, where Cricket Australia XI is hosting the England Lions side, Cricket Australia confirmed.

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"I am feeling really good and very grateful how it progressed last week," Kuhnemann said in a chat with News Corp. "I stopped the painkillers a few days ago. There is not much pain at all anymore.

"If anything, I think it can make you more confident because you know the finger is covered. The surgeon has put a nail in it, and if anything (the finger) is probably more stable than it was before.

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"I have had balls hit back at me a lot harder, and I have been fine. It was one of those freak things where it hit the exact spot it had to cause damage,” he continued. 

Kuhnemann will have an elite company of veteran spinner Nathan Lyon, with Todd Murphy and uncapped Corner Connolly adding options on the Sri Lankan tour.

The first of the two Tests begins in Galle starting January 29.

Australia Test squad - 

Steve Smith (captain), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Travis Head (vice-captain), Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Nathan McSweeney, Todd Murphy, Mitchell Starc and Beau Webster

(With inputs from agencies)