New Zealand will next play Afghanistan on October 18, Wednesday, also in Chennai.
Williamson had spent six months out of action since suffering an ACL tear during the IPL 2023. He underwent surgery for the same and worked his way slowly to full fitness. He was named in New Zealand’s World Cup squad and played in the two warm-up matches as well.
But he didn’t play in the first two World Cup matches for the Kiwis, who won handsomely under Tom Latham’s captaincy. He finally made his international comeback against Bangladesh.
He made 78 runs against Bangladesh in Chennai in the chase of 246 runs but was hit on the left hand by an errant throw. Despite receiving treatment on the field, Williamson opted to retire hurt.
And now, New Zealand Cricket has confirmed that X-rays showed an undisplaced fracture to his left thumb. Williamson will remain in the New Zealand squad with the aim of being available for the back end of pool play next month.
“Firstly, we’re all feeling for Kane to have this occur after all his hard work to return from his knee injury. While it’s disappointing news, the initial diagnosis has given us some optimism he can still feature later in the pool play following a period of rest and rehabilitation.
Kane is clearly a massive part of our side and a world-class player and captain - so we’ll look to give him every opportunity we can to return in the tournament,” NZ coach Gary Stead told nzc. nz.
Tom Blundell has been called up as a cover for Kane Williamson. He will join the contingent in India, but won’t be an official member of the New Zealand squad.
“Tom’s been with the one-day side on tours to Pakistan and Bangladesh and performed well. He covers multiple positions in the batting order and his wicket-keeping skills are also an added bonus as a back-up,” he added.
New Zealand will next play Afghanistan on October 18, Wednesday, also in Chennai.