New Zealand coach Gary Stead is “very confident” that Kane Williamson will return to action for the first test of their home summer, against England, which will be played at Hagley Oval in Christchurch from November 28 to 2 of December.
The New Zealand team management did not want to take the risk of Williamson returning to action for the Mumbai test, which begins on Friday, and will continue to take a cautious approach to his rehabilitation. Williamson, 34, had suffered a groin injury during the tour of Sri Lanka last month, just before the start of the three-match Test series in India.
“Yes, I’m very confident,” Stead said of Williamson’s availability for the first Test against England. “I mean with a push we could have gotten him here. [in India] immediately, but considering, I guess, the travel factor and making sure you can recover properly when you get here, we didn’t feel it was worth the risk. “So we are happy to have him ready and very, very confident that he will be fine for that first Test against England.”
Despite Williamson’s absence throughout the Test series in India, New Zealand found a way to win their first Test series in India. Williamson’s No.3 Will Young faced the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and R Ashwin in contrasting conditions in Bengaluru and Pune.
“Look, it’s always disappointing when he’s not here with us,” Stead said of Williamson. “I mean, he’s New Zealand’s biggest Test scorer for a reason, and I think whenever you’ve got Kane on your side, they look like a stronger team. “But the boys have done very well.
“We’ve settled in well without him here. It’s in Kane’s best interest to be completely fit for England and we’re certainly looking forward to him coming back and hopefully making a difference in that Test series there for us.”
Ben Sears likely to miss England Test series through injury
However, Tearaway quick Ben Sears will miss the three-match Test series against England, although Stead is hopeful of having him fit for the latter part of the summer at home. Sears had also been ruled out of the entire Test series in India, due to a knee injury. The 26-year-old had experienced pain in his left knee while training ahead of the two-match Test series in Sri Lanka, and underwent minor surgery on Wednesday.
“He is unlikely to be available for the England Test series,” Stead said of Sears. “Ben will have a little surgery today and just on his knee. Hopefully he can recover in the near future. I’m really hoping it will be part of the summer.
“It’s not a big operation, he just needs a bit of cleaning up on his knee, so hopefully by Christmas he’ll be back up and running.”
On his Test debut in Christchurch in March earlier this year, Sears took a five-wicket haul against Australia and stormed into contention for the subsequent six-Test tour of the subcontinent. Sears prepared for the challenge with a four-day preparatory camp at the Super Kings Academy in Chennai before the injury sidelined him.
Sears’ absence could open up a possible Test debut for his Wellington team-mate Nathan Smith, who was added to New Zealand’s central contract list in September. Smith, a bowling all-rounder, was the top wicket-taker in the 2023-24 Plunket Shield, with 33 strikes in seven matches at an average of 17.18. He was also at Worcestershire during the recent county season.
Firm hopes for a repeat of WTC 2021
New Zealand’s shock victory over India in Bengaluru and Pune has them dreaming of reaching the final of the World Test Championship (WTC). If they win each of the remaining four tests, they will finish with 64.29%. It won’t ensure qualification, but it will certainly keep them in contention. Stead took heart from the inaugural WTC cycle in 2019-21, when New Zealand won six in a row on their way to securing the title.
“Yes, I mean, winning a series in itself is incredible, but what we want to do is keep trying to improve in each match and now we will face different circumstances: the red clay.” [in Mumbai] “It’s very different,” Stead said. “The way he performs is different so we will have to adapt quickly and our next two training sessions will be important, but for the World Test Championship itself there is no doubt that one win more here would definitely help us.
“I remember the first time we were in the situation of qualifying for the first WTC, we had to win four events in a row and we did it. So, hopefully, there will be some kind of simile about that that we can lean on and say: ‘Well , we have done it before, here we have the opportunity to do something very special again.
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