Kane Williamson ruled out of New Zealand's World Cup opener in Ahmedabad

New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson is yet to recover completely from his ACL injury, which he suffered in the IPL. Since then, the 33-year-old has not played any competitive match and was in doubt for the upcoming ODI World Cup. However, he has trained really hard and spent a lot of time in his recovery and courtesy of this, the cricketer made it to the tournament.

However, as things stand, Williamson is very likely to miss New Zealand’s opening game against England on October 5 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. He will be batting in two of the warm-up games against Pakistan and South Africa but isn’t fit enough to field for 50 overs. Head coach Gary Stead mentioned that the plan remains the same, where they track Kane’s development on an everyday basis. He also added that there’s no pressure on the player, and is expected to soon recover to full fitness.

“Right from the start we’ve taken a long-term view on Kane’s return to play. His recovery is tracking well and it’s now a matter of making sure he can cope with the rigours and intensity of international cricket. We’ll continue to take a day-by-day approach to Kane’s rehabilitation and certainly won’t be putting any pressure on him to return before he is ready,” Stead was quoted as saying by the New Zealand Herald.

Meanwhile, there’s no update on Tim Southee’s injury. The ace pacer was on the verge of missing out on the tournament due to a finger injury but made it to the squad at the very last moment. However, New Zealand Cricket hasn’t shared many details about his recovery, and it is unclear if the cricketer will miss the first couple of games.

On the other hand, Kyle Jamieson has been sent in case Southee or any of the pacers gets ruled out at the last moment. Overall, the Black Caps are expected to give their everything in order to win their first-ever ODI World Cup, especially after finishing second-best in their last two attempts.

Check: ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Teams & Squads