Gujarat Titans batter Kane Williamson has been ruled out of IPL 2023 with a knee injury he had sustained in the opening game of the tournament, against Chennai Super Kings in Ahmedabad.
Williamson will head home next week and be seen by relevant medical specialists to establish a treatment plan, according to NZC.
"It is sad to lose Kane to injury so early in the tournament. We wish him a speedy recovery, with the hope of seeing him in action very soon," Titans' director of cricket Vikram Solanki, said in a statement.
In what was his debut game for Titans, Williamson had landed awkwardly - with his right knee buckling under his weight - while attempting a catch at the deep square leg boundary in the 13th over of Super Kings' innings. He had leapt to intercept a ball headed for six off Ruturaj Gaikwad's bat. He managed to save two runs, palming the ball into the field of play before it bounced onto the boundary boards, but by that point Williamson was on the ground clutching his right knee.
Despite receiving treatment for some time, he could not return to the field, with Titans bringing B Sai Sudharsan on as substitute fielder first and later swapping the two in the XI via the new Impact Player rule.
It remains to be seen for how much longer after the IPL Williamson will be out of action, but New Zealand coach Gary Stead had called the injury "a big blow" for Williamson and the team. New Zealand are currently playing T20Is against Sri Lanka at home after the Tests and ODIs, and will then fly to Pakistan for five T20Is and as many ODIs. Williamson was missing both those tours for his participation in the IPL.
Williamson had only recently fully recovered from a long-standing elbow injury, which had plagued him over the past two years.