Australian batsman Peter Handscomb felt "hurt" knowing he is not considered among the 26 best limited-overs players in the country, as he wasn't picked in the preliminary squad for the tour of England in September. 

"I saw a post on Instagram that Australia had named a 26-man squad for the ODIs in England. I was like, 'Oh cool, all right. I guess I'm not in that!' That sucked," Handscomb told cricket.com.au.

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"I was in the 15-man squad to go to India in January. I still thought I was in the top 20 one-day players given what I had done over the last year and a half. To not be in the 26, that really hurt."

"Going from being in the 15 and then having 11 guys essentially jump me – I know they're different roles and different positions – but that hurt a fair bit," he added. 

The treatment handed out to Handscomb by the selectors has left a lot to be desired, as he helped Australia win an ODI series in India last year, which should've ensured his World Cup ticket but didn't with the return of Steve Smith. 

The right-hand batsman was recalled for the last match, the semi-final defeat against England, after injuries to Shaun Marsh and Usman Khawaja. But his non-selection at the first place suggested how far down he is in the pecking order.

In Australia's first ODI series in the new cycle in India this January as well, Handscomb was made to sit on the bench, with Marnus Labuschagne considered above him. The 29-year-old was then left out of the squad altogether for the trip to South Africa and then the later-suspended home series versus New Zealand. 

The uncertainty around his career forced Handscomb to ask for honest feedback from new selector George Bailey, with whom, he says, he had an "open and honest" discussion. 

"I had a really, really good conversation with George. I just wanted to get clarification around how I had gone from being in the 15 to not being in the 26."

"To his credit he said I'm competing against guys like Smudge (Smith), Marnus and (wicketkeeper Alex) Carey as well in terms of guys who control the middle order. They're pretty solid at the moment in terms of three, four, five (in the batting order)."

"I argued that I had made runs and could push a case there, but I'm going up against some pretty good players in terms of trying to steal their spots."

"I understood that decision, that's fine, but that didn't mean it hurt any less. It was really good to have that conversation with George to get that clarity."

Handscomb could at least breathe a sigh of relief on being given assurance that he still in the mix. But he knows a lot will have to go right if he is to fulfil his dream of playing the 2023 World Cup in India.  

"I would like to think with the World Cup in India in 2023 that I am at least on their radar," he said. "I'd consider myself a good player of spin and being able to control those middle overs."

"George did mention that (World Cup) in our conversation, that it is hopefully something I can aspire to. With that being three years away, there's still a lot of cricket to be played and water to go under the bridge," he concluded.