Kane Williamson's knee injury. Photo: Andrew Cornaga / www.photosport.nz
Black Caps captain and star batter Kane Williamson is set to miss this year's one-day World Cup.
Williamson will require surgery on his injured right knee, after scans confirmed he'd ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament while fielding for the Gujarat Titans in their opening match of the Indian Premier League.
Gujarat Titans' Kane Williamson is helped by teammates back to Pavillion after he was injured during the Indian Premier League match between Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings, 2023. Photo: AFP
He returned home on Tuesday and will have surgery in two or three weeks.
ACL injuries require six to 12 months to rehabilitate meaning mean he's unlikely to be fit and available for selection at this year's ODI World Cup in India, which starts in October.
While coach Gary Stead concedes the chances of Williamson recovering it time to play the 50-over tournament are slim, he isn't ready to completely rule him out yet.
"From our perspective, we certainly haven't given up hope on that, and Kane will meet a number of milestones in the next six months or so. The first one being an operation he will have in two to three weeks time. The reason that is delayed is that the best practice is to wait for the swelling to go down around the knee."
Williamson wanted to acknowledge the support he'd received since sustaining the injury.
"I've received great support over the past few days and want to thank both the Gujarat Titans and New Zealand Cricket for that."
"Naturally it's disappointing to get such an injury, but my focus now is on having the surgery and starting rehab."
"It's going to take some time, but I'll be doing everything I can to get back on the field as soon as possible."
While his chances of playing at the World Cup are now all but over, Williamson vowed to support the team in any way he could.
"I look forward to doing what I can to support Gary (Black Caps coach Gary Stead) and the team over the next few months."
Williamson is likely to have surgery on his knee within the next three weeks.