New Zealand captain Kane Williamson is “unlikely” to go through surgery for his persistent elbow issue but would require a sustained rehab to recover soon and get back on the park, said team head coach Gary Stead.
Stead said the player could be out of action for the best part of next two months, which would mean him missing the two-match Test series against Bangladesh and also the white-ball visit by neighbors Australia.
If the rehab goes well, Williamson would be eyeing a return in time for the home series against South Africa in mid-February. But Stead said that is not a certainty yet, and there is no timeframe set for the great batter’s comeback.
“I think surgery is unlikely. With the tendon injuries around the elbow, my understanding of the situation from talking to our physio [Tommy Simsek] is all surgery would do is ensure rehab is done. If we don’t have to cut a tendon, our choice is not to do that as well.”
he was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo as the India tour came to a close.
Williamson missed the second Test against India in Mumbai after failing in his two innings in Kanpur the Test before. The batter has had to battle against the elbow issue since the start of the year when he missed the entire limited-overs series at home versus Bangladesh.
He subsequently missed the initial few games of the Indian leg of IPL 2021 and skipped one Test of the two-match Test series in England ahead of the World Test Championship final in late June.
Williamson showed some improvement in this front at the start of the T20 World Cup in UAE but then flared up the issue towards the latter part of it, having to then miss the T20I series in India.
Thus, Stead said while Williamson is doing “okay” without the surgery, he expects the rehabilitation period to last about “eight to nine weeks”.
New Zealand will be hoping that their skipper and best batter is back to 100% fitness soon as they approach deeper into the new WTC cycle and the surge towards the T20 World Cup in Australia next year.
