Josh Hazlewood, the Australia pacer sounded confident about his fitness

Hazlewood is set to return for the first time since January this year © Getty

Josh Hazlewood, the Australia pacer, sounded confident about his fitness ahead of the World Test Championship final following a training session at the Formby Cricket Club in West Lancashire on Tuesday (May 30).

Hazlewood, who has been hampered by a side issue in recent times, had to cut short his IPL campaign with the Royal Challengers due to the problem resurfacing. He got to play only three matches in the T20 league as he was recovering from an Achilles injury which forced him to miss the four Tests against India and the subsequent three-match ODI series.

"My fitness is pretty good and it is just a matter of ticking off every session from here until that date (June 7) basically," Hazlewood told the ICC after Australia's first official practice session. "We will probably have anywhere from three to four more sessions - bat versus ball and then a couple of longer days in the nets as well or centre wicket down in London - so it is just ticking off those last few boxes and pulling up well from every session."

"It was pretty close (to full pace today). I came down for a little bowl yesterday just to loosen up and to get a bit more out of today's session, so it is feeling good. After a long few travel days it is always a case of the first one getting the cobwebs out and stretching out and doing some run-throughs just to get the blood flowing. It is always good to get the first one out of the way and when we get to London we will steam in."