During Wednesday’s match between South Africa and New Zealand in Pune, Kane Williamson will remain on the bench. The skipper of the Black Caps, who suffered a thumb injury against Bangladesh in Chennai, is not expected to play in the match.
Williamson won’t be playing for the Proteas, as New Zealand Cricket (NZC) confirmed in an official statement on Tuesday. On Monday, the skipper hit in the nets, but he didn’t seem ready for a game. The NZC said that an evaluation of his health would be conducted before to the Kiwis’ next match against Pakistan.
The Black Caps said on Instagram, “Kane Williamson has been ruled out of Wednesday’s @cricketworldcup match against South Africa.”
It said, “Williamson has batted in the nets the past two days, but he will not be participating in match action tomorrow.”
Williamson was hit on the left thumb during a run-out against Bangladesh. Subsequently, the scans showed that he had broken. Tom Latham, a wicketkeeper-battler, will continue to guide the Kiwis against the Proteas in his absence.
The skipper of New Zealand had previously sustained a hip injury while playing for the Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 season opening. After becoming well again, he went back for the World Cup, but he had to deal with another setback early in the competition. Williamson got an undefeated 78 off 107 balls while batting against Bangladesh before leaving the field due to a “retired hurt.”
In the current ODI World Cup, New Zealand has performed well, sitting in the top half of the points standings. They are ranked third in the standings with eight points and a net run rate of +1.232 after four victories and four defeats. They defeated the reigning champions, England, by nine wickets to begin the tournament, and they went on to destroy Bangladesh and the Netherlands.
The Black Caps defeated Afghanistan by an astounding 149 runs. Nevertheless, after losing to Australia and India, they dropped to third place.