iPhone | iPad
Android
Huawei
Dominica was one of seven countries in the West Indies selected to stage matches in the showpiece tournament in June
KT APPDOWNLOAD
ICC World Cup 2023: New Zealand's Williamson back for Bangladesh match
Williamson missed their wins over defending champions England and the Netherlands to continue his rehabilitation from a knee injury
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson during the practice session in Chennai on Thursday. — PTI
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson will play his first match of the World Cup against Bangladesh on Friday but fast bowler Tim Southee will continue on the sidelines, the 33-year-old batter said on Thursday.
Williamson missed their wins over defending champions England and the Netherlands to continue his rehabilitation from a knee injury he suffered in March that required surgery.
Experienced fast bowler Southee has been recovering following surgery on his fractured right thumb.
"Tim's progressing well, but won't be playing tomorrow's game," Williamson, who led his team to the final of the 2019 edition of the tournament, told reporters.
"As for my recovery, it's been quite a journey but largely a good one.
"...really excited to be named in the World Cup squad, be sitting here now and really excited at the prospect of tomorrow, which is another big challenge for us."
New Zealand fell agonisingly short of winning the title in 2019 when England were declared winners via the boundary countback rule after the heart-stopping final at the Lord's had ended in a tie.
Williamson said they drew inspiration from the All Blacks, New Zealand's three-time World-Cup winning rugby team, who face Ireland in the tournament's quarterfinals on Saturday.
"I think when we were growing up, we all wanted to be All Blacks and that couldn't happen so we tried something else," the batter said.
"We're here as a cricket team but I think something that you do hear often about their side is their culture, their environment, and their ability to keep moving forward as a team and adapting to what's in front of them..."
"And they keep doing really well at staying ahead of that curve."
Looking at their next match, Williamson said New Zealand could not afford to underestimate Bangladesh especially at a spin-friendly venue like Chennai.
"We come into this tournament knowing that anybody can beat anybody. That makes a really exciting event I think and the conditions are always going to change," he said.
"I think both teams have some good spin bowlers that no doubt will play a big part tomorrow."
Friday's match:
Bangladesh vs New Zealand
Chepauk, Chennai
12:30 pm UAE Time
Teams:
New Zealand (probable): 1 Devon Conway, 2 Will Young, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Rachin Ravindra, 5 Tom Latham (wk), 6 Daryl Mitchell, 7 Glenn Phillips, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Mark Henry, 10 Lockie Ferguson/Ish Sodhi, 11 Trent Boult
Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tanzid Hasan, 2 Litton Das, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 4 Shakib Al Hasan (capt), 5 Towhid Hridoy, 6 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 7 Mehidy Hasan, 8 Mahedi Hasan, 9 Taskin Ahmed, 10 Shoriful Islam, 11 Mustafizur Rahman/Nasum Ahmed
Head-to-head
Matches: 41
New Zealand wins: 30
Bangladesh wins: 10
Tied: 0
No result: 1
ALSO READ:
More news from Sports
Rajput win hands hosts unassailable 3-1 lead in five-game series after World Cup defeat
Left-arm spinner Taijul Islam claims second 10-wicket haul in Tests to help set up 150-run victory
Muhammad Waseem (23) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (22) play vital roles in well-earned win
In-form handler saddles several leading chances led by course specialist Mersaal
The 15-time major champion, who has not played since having ankle surgery in April, shot a three-over-par 75
After almost a year out with injury the former world number one to return to competitive tennis in January
Discussions were held to organize camps as part of various Russian team’s preparations for the 2024 Paris Olympics