Michael Clarke is ahead of schedule in his race to be fit for next month’s World Cup.

Skipper Clarke is still on track to return from his hamstring surgery in Australia’s second World Cup match against Bangladesh on February 21 – the deadline set by the selectors for him when they announced the squad.

However, Australia coach Darren Lehmann is more optimistic and on Monday flagged the possibility of Clarke appearing in some of the team’s practice games before the World Cup starts on February 14.

“He’s ahead of schedule, which is pleasing for us,” Lehmann said.

“He’s had a couple of bats in the nets, which is a really good thing for us. Fingers crossed, but he’s ahead of schedule.

“We’d love him to play some warm-up games, but we’ll be guided by the medical staff there. The pleasing thing is he’s back in the nets and hopefully he can ramp it up from there.”

Team physiotherapist Alex Kountouris said Clarke’s surgeon was very pleased with his progress after a check-up on Sunday.

“Michael is progressing well in his rehab and is currently running on a regular basis and has commenced batting,” said Kountouris.