Image Source- AFP
Following examinations that revealed no significant
knee damage, Mitchell Santner is anticipated to be healthy and available for
the start of the World Cup.
Santner injured his knee while fielding when New
Zealand lost to England at the Ageas Bowl on Sunday. when a result, he was
unable to play in the third ODI on Wednesday at The Oval.
Ish Sodhi, the other frontline spinner in New
Zealand’s probable World Cup roster, rested at home while the team battled in
his absence. Sharing the spin bowling duties, Glenn Phillips and Rachin
Ravindra produced combined figures of 1 for 85 in 10 overs.
“Mitch had a full scan on his knee, which he
landed on when he took that catch in the last game at the Ageas Bowl,”
Gary Stead, New Zealand’s head coach, said.
“It’s come back positively, which is good for us.
He’s just got quite a bit of swelling around the knee still, which they think
is a joint problem. It’s nothing more than that.”
New Zealand’s heavy defeat followed the pattern of the
tour, with wide margins of victory and defeat in each of the four T20Is and the
first three ODIs.
“All seven games have been a bit like that,
haven’t they?” Stead said. “We were just saying, it would be nice to
actually have a close one so we can see both teams under pressure.
“It was disappointing that we didn’t put our best
foot forward tonight but they played very well. Ben Stokes played an amazing
innings.
“Both teams have taken the opportunity to change
their line-ups a little bit. With such a congested period of games in a short
period of time, we’re certainly mindful of getting people to the World Cup
without significant injury or risk.”