India star opener Shikhar Dhawan has been ruled out of the World cup 2019 for three weeks following a thumb injury he sustained during the match against defending champions Australia on Sunday.

It is suspected that Dhawan sustained a hairline fracture on his left thumb after a rising delivery from pacer Nathan Coulter-Nile hit on his thumb. The left-hander looked in considerable pain but managed to score a sensational hundred. The 33-year-old will definitely miss India’s next two matches, against New Zealand and Pakistan.

Dhawan didn't take the field due to the injury and Ravindra Jadeja had replaced him in the field for the entire game.

Speaking after the game, the opener had said: "We are happy with the result as it was a great team effort. It's a great sign for our team and I'm happy with this man of the match award. We are very happy with the performance overall."

With Dhawan injured, designated standbys Rishabh Pant and Ambati Rayudu are in contention to replace Dhawan in case he is completely ruled out of the event. However, the team management might push for Mumbai batsman and India A captain Shreyas Iyer as he is a specialist No.4 batsman. Iyer is currently in England.

Dhawan is being assessed by Patrick Farhart and specialists are being consulted right now to get a clear idea on his availability.

Shikhar scored a match winning ton against Australia at the Kennington Oval. He has been a key player in major ICC tournaments, scoring  6 hundreds for India. In the 2015 World Cup, Dhawan had scored 2 hundreds.

Earlier, It was learnt that the stylish India opener underwent precautionary tests following which team physio Patrick Farhart would decide whether the left-hander would play India’s next WC encounter against New Zealand at Trent Bridge on Thursday.