New Zealand players are seen during a practice session ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 match against Netherlands, in Hyderabad on October 8, 2023.
| Photo Credit: PTI
Kane Williamson will be spending more time on the sidelines and is yet to regain full fitness as New Zealand takes on the Netherlands in the sixth match of the World Cup 2023 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on October 9.
New Zealand has been hamstrung by the fitness issues of its key players, especially its bowlers during its opener against England. The Black Caps went for a bowlers’ shopping and found gold in Glenn Phillips and Mitchell Santner, with Matt Henry spearheading the bowling attack. Against England, the silent assassins hammered the defending champion by nine wickets, with Henry headlining by picking three wickets and Phillips, along with Santner, sharing four wickets among themselves.
Such was the selection audacity of the Tom Latham-led side that it managed to chop away 20 overs from its part-timers, with Rachin Ravindra bowling his full quota of 10 overs.
The explosive 23-year-old opener, who has shades of Sanath Jayasuriya, blasted away to become the youngest to score a century on his World Cup debut, along with Devon Conway, who stood tall with a 121-ball 152.
The good news for the Kiwis is that fast bowlers Lockie Ferguson and Tim Southee will make a return for the second game against the Dutch after recovering from injuries.
The only associate nation in this tournament, the Netherlands, did give a scare to Pakistan but fizzled out with the bat to lose its opening match.
In its fifth appearance at the World Cup, having made its debut in 1996, the Scott Edwards-led side needs to find batting depth to pose a challenge against New Zealand.
