The Black Caps have suffered a significant blow ahead of the T20 World Cup final.
Photo: Photosport Ltd 2021
Top-order batsman Devon Conway has been ruled out of the match against Australia on Monday (NZ time) after breaking his right hand.
Conway sustained the injury when he punched his bat in disappointment immediately after being dismissed in Thursday's semifinal win over England in Abu Dhabi.
An x-ray has confirmed a break to the fifth metacarpal in the New Zealand left-hander's right hand, with the injury also ruling him out of the tour to India after the World Cup.
Coach Gary Stead said Conway was devastated by the news.
"He's absolutely gutted to be ruled out like this at this time.
"No-one is more disappointed at the moment than he is - so we're really trying to rally around him.
"It looked a pretty innocuous reactionary incident on the field, but the blow obviously caught the bat between the glove padding and while it's not the smartest thing he's done there's certainly an element of bad luck in the injury."
The good news for the Black Caps was that they had a strong wicketkeeping back-up in their squad in Tim Seifert.
The Northern Districts gloveman had been New Zealand's first-choice keeper in T20s until this tournament, when Conway had been handed the role.