Kane Williamson Set To Miss ODI World Cup 2023

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Kane Williamson is set to miss the ICC Men's ODI World Cup 2023 in India after injuring his knee in the IPL 2023 opener against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on March 31. The New Zealand captain has raptured his anterior cruciate ligament, the scans have confirmed and will require surgery on his injured right knee.

The 32-year-old returned home on Tuesday and was seen coming out of the airport on crutches. According to reports by New Zealand media, Williamson will have surgery in two or three weeks.

ACL injuries require six to 12 months to rehabilitate and that means he's unlikely to be fit and available for selection at the upcoming ODI World Cup which is scheduled to be held in India in October-November.

Black Caps coach Gary Stead has reckoned that the chances of the white-ball captain recovering in time to play the ICC mega event are slim. However, 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 has thanked his IPL team Gujarat Titans and New Zealand Cricket (NZC) for their support and vowed to help New Zealand in any way he could.

"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."

"I look forward to doing what I can to support Gary and the team over the next few months," RNZ quotes Willaimson as saying.

The unfortunate incident happened in the 13th over of the first match of IPL 2023. Williamson caught the ball hit by CSK opener Ruturaj Gaikwad at mid-wicket boundary before flicking it and himself going over the ropes. In the process, Williamson landed abruptly on his right knee and winced in pain as the support staff rushed to him.

After a good few minutes with the 32-year-old, the support staff helped him hobble out of the ground. Sai Sudarshan replaced Williamson as an Impact Player in the match. Dasun Shanaka has replaced Williamson at the Hardik Pandya-led franchise.