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Kane Williamson suffered a fractured thumb in New Zealand’s Cricket World Cup win over Bangladesh on Friday, an X-ray has revealed.
In his official comeback game after seven months out with a knee injury, Williamson scored 78 but retired hurt late on in the eight-wicket win after suffering a freak injury when hit on the thumb by a throw from a Bangladesh fielder.
The Black Caps captain was cautiously optimistic at the time, saying after the game: “I’ve got a scan tomorrow… hopefully it’s ok.” But New Zealand Cricket announced on Saturday morning that an X-ray revealed an undisplaced fracture to his left thumb.
New Zealand’s captain Kane Williamson receives treatment on his injured thumb before retiring hurt against Bangladesh
Williamson is to remain with the squad in India and is hoping to be available for the team’s final pool matches in November before the semi-finals and final, should New Zealand progress further.
Tom Blundell will travel to India as a back-up.
Chasing 246 to win the game against Bangladesh in Chennai, Williamson batted superbly in his first competitive game since rupturing his knee ligament in March. He had previously shown promising form in New Zealand’s warm-up games against Pakistan and South Africa, neither of which carried official ODI status.
Williamson forged an 80-run partnership with Devon Conway (45) and dropped anchor in the company of Daryl Mitchell (89no off 67 balls), who smashed the winning six with 43 balls to spare.
It was a third win in three for New Zealand to start the tournament, following successes against holders England and the Netherlands, both games in which Williamson didn’t play.
The Black Caps are next in action against Afghanistan on Wednesday.
Watch every game of the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup live on Sky Sports. You can stream the tournament on NOW
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