Kane Williamson delivered heartbreaking World Cup news after injury

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has been delivered some brutal news and is set to miss the One Day International World Cup in India after results showed he tore his cruciate ligament during the IPL. Williamson was playing in his first IPL of the season for the defending champions the Gujarat Titans as they defeated the Chennai Kings.

But Williamson's game ended in tragedy when he collapsed in pain in the outfield. Williamson was carried off the field after injuring his knee on the square-leg boundary when he attempted to prevent a six off the bat of Ruturaj Gaikwad.

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Williamson returned home to New Zealand after realising his IPL season was all but over. However, in a brutal update, Williamson will undergo surgery for his ACL injury and rehabilitation is expected to take around nine to 12 months.

This will see him miss October's One Day World Cup starting in six months. Williamson is determined to undergo his recovery and was yet to rule himself out of the tournament.

"Naturally it's disappointing to get such an injury, but my focus now is on having the surgery and starting rehab," he said in a statement from NZ Cricket. "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."

Williamson returned to New Zealand this week, but was seen on crutches at the airport. And coach Gary Stead said the 32-year-old will undergo surgery later this month, but was waiting for the swelling to go down.

"You take Kane the player for a start, but then Kane the leader and the person he is within our group as well, it's a huge spanner in the works for us," Stead said. "We haven't given up hope that he might be right but at this stage it does look unlikely.

Our first thoughts are with Kane at the moment, it's a tough time for him, it's not an injury you expect…it hits you pretty hard."

New Zealand fans devastated for captain Kane Williamson

The former Test captain had only recently got back to full fitness after a nagging elbow injury which has caused him problems for two years. His recent form in the Test arena, in which he has scored with two centuries and a double hundred, had appeared to suggest he was getting back to his very best after a miserable IPL campaign in 2022.

Williamson will be a huge loss for New Zealand having captained the nation to a loss against England during the 2019 World Cup Final. In a dramatic super over, England won after a boundary count back.

Williamson, judged player of the tournament, won global plaudits for graciously accepting defeat on the little-known rule and in such a heartbreaking manner. The 32-year-old is considered New Zealand's all-time greatest batter, and earlier this year became his country's leading Test run-scorer.

The premier batter averages 47.83 having scored 13 centuries in 161 ODIs. Tom Latham has captained New Zealand in Williamson's absence in the past. Fans were left devastated for Williamson, who is considered one of the nicest characters in cricket.

with AAP

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