Shreyas Iyer could return to action on January 6 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy

Shreyas Iyer has received a conditional clearance from BCCI's Centre of Excellent in Bengaluru as he works his way back to full fitness following a spleen injury during India's tour of Australia last October, and could feature in the next round of the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Iyer spent ten days at the CoE for the last stretch of his rehab. As part of the return-to-play protocol, he featured in a practice game on January 2. Iyer batted pain-free, and came through all his drills, both pre- and post-game, without showing any signs of discomfort.

He was since been given the go-ahead to feature for Mumbai in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. Iyer is likely to feature in the sixth round of matches on January 6 in Jaipur - Mumbai play Himachal Pradesh - with the national selectors in attendance.

India's ODI squad for the New Zealand series is set to be picked on Saturday. While there is a provision to pick Iyer subject to fitness, it's possible that the selectors will want to see more of him in the domestic white-ball competition before throwing him into international cricket.

In Iyer's absence, Ruturaj Gaikwad batted at No. 4 in the series against South Africa, and even brought up his maiden ODI century then. In the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy, Devdutt Padikkal too has made a compelling case to be considered in the middle order after slamming four centuries in five innings.

Iyer had suffered the injury during the third and final ODI against Australia in Sydney on October 25 and was hospitalised for spleen laceration with internal bleeding.

The injury took place when Iyer took a catch running backwards from point to dismiss Alex Carey. He immediately clutched his rib cage and signalled for medical attention. He was taken off the field and did not return for the remainder of Australia's innings.

At the time he was discharged from the Sydney hospital, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia had said, "The injury was promptly identified, and the bleeding was immediately arrested following a minor procedure. He has undergone appropriate medical management for the same. He is now stable and recovering well. The BCCI medical team, along with specialists in Sydney and India, are pleased with his recovery."

The last official update on his fitness was on November 28, when Morne Morkel, the India bowling coach, had confirmed that Iyer had "started his rehab".