Prolific New Zealander batter Kane Williamson is making steady progress in recovering from a knee injury, which he sustained during the 1st game of the Indian Premier League against Chennai Super Kings. The 32-year-old is highly unlikely to be part of the ODI World Cup 2023, as it would take some time for him to return to cricket.
The New Zealand skipper Williamson had ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, for which he underwent surgery, it is unlikely Williamson will be fit to lead New Zealand to the World Cup in October and November.
The 32-year-old is working on the rehabilitation process. Speaking to Newstalk ZB’s Jason Pine, Williamson is wary of pushing himself too to be ready for the 2023 ODI World Cup, as he feels that they are a lot of cricket left after the Marquee event and revealed that he focuses on working on each day to get through his tough period rather than looking too much ahead of him.
“As much as I’d love for everything to pan out from a time perspective, the healing of the injury is the focus, because there is still cricket after the World Cup and I would like to be involved in that.
“The focus is just on each day, each week and not getting too far ahead of myself, because it’s perhaps on the unlikely side of expectations,” Kane Williamson said.
“Naturally in my mind, there’s a level of interest because the timings aren’t drastically far apart, but there’s a lot of work to do before that being a potential reality.”
Kane Williamson led New Zealand to the finals of the 2019 ODI World Cup before losing to England in a super over. Wicketkeeper Tom Latham is expected to lead the team in the absence of their regular skipper in the marquee event.
The Journey Is A long One In Terms Of Getting Stronger – Kane Williamson
Kane Williamson understands that he needs to strike the balance between being patient and his own expectations to play for the country very soon and admitted that it long journey for him to get his usual best back in the to get his moments back in the forthcoming months.
“It’s a balance to strike — being a little bit patient and managing my own expectations, The journey is a long one in terms of getting stronger and getting that mobility and movements that aren’t fixed.
“As you start feeling better and the range of motion improves, then you can start slowly progressing into some more agility-type movements,” Kane Williamson added.
Kane Williamson’s injury will be a huge blow for Kiwis, as he is a more experienced player in that setup and the Black Caps will look to develop a player for the No.3 spot for New Zealand ahead of the 2023 ODI World Cup.