NEW YORK – Jermell Charlo isn’t the least bit concerned about his left hand as he prepares for the biggest fight of his career.

Charlo suffered two fractures in his left hand during a sparring session a few days before last Christmas. The damage done to his jab hand caused an indefinite postponement and ultimately the cancelation of his junior middleweight title fight with Tim Tszyu, but Charlo assured anyone worried about whether it is fully healed that he wouldn’t have even considered challenging Canelo Alvarez on September 30 if he didn’t have full confidence in his left hand.

The 33-year-old Charlo addressed concerns about his injury during an interview with Showtime’s broadcasting team following a recent press conference at Palladium Times Square.

“And then the hand injury, don’t worry about that cuz I wouldn’t even be takin’ no fight like this if I had to worry about a hand injury,” Charlo told Showtime’s Brian Campbell, Raul Marquez and Stephen Jackson. “The hand good, and that’s why we gettin’ a opportunity like that.”

Charlo’s injured left hand required extensive physical therapy and rest, not surgery, yet it took long enough to heal that the Richmond, Texas resident’s mandated match with Tszyu was never rescheduled before he instead accepted this higher-profile, lucrative chance versus Alvarez.

Australia’s Tszyu (23-0, 17 KOs) was supposed to challenge Charlo (35-1-1, 19 KOs) for the undisputed 154-pound champion’s IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO belts January 28 at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino’s Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas.

Tszyu has since knocked out former WBC champ Tony Harrison (29-4-1, 21 KOs), the only opponent who has beaten Charlo, in the ninth round March 12 to win the WBO interim junior middleweight title. Sydney’s Tszyu defended that title by knocking out Mexico’s Carlos Ocampo (35-3, 23 KOs) in the first round June 18.

The WBO has since informed Charlo that he will be stripped of his WBO 154-pound crown as soon as the bell rings for his 12-round, 168-pound showdown with Guadalajara’s Alvarez (59-2-2, 39 KOs) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Tszyu will then be elevated from interim champion to full champion and Charlo will no longer be boxing’s fully unified 154-pound champion.

By allowing Charlo to keep his WBO belt until he faces Alvarez, Premier Boxing Champions and Showtime can promote Alvarez-Charlo as an “undisputed versus undisputed” showdown, unprecedented among male boxers.

Most oddsmakers have established Alvarez as a 4-1 favorite over Charlo, who will move up two weight classes, 14 pounds altogether, for their Showtime Pay-Per-View main event.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.