Due to a torn Achilles tendon, all-rounder Michael Bracewell will be unable to participate in the next one-day World Cup in October, New Zealand Cricket said on Wednesday.
It is the latest setback for New Zealand’s prospects in India, where skipper Kane Williamson is now out due to a major knee injury.
After incurring the injury while batting for the Worcestershire Rapids in England’s Twenty20 Blast, it is anticipated that Bracewell would be out for anything from four to eight months.
According to New Zealand Cricket, the 32-year-old will have surgery on Thursday in the United Kingdom before commencing his rehabilitation.
Since making his debut in international one-day competition in 2022, Bracewell has scored 510 runs at a rate of 42.50 runs per game on average. In 19 matches, he has been responsible for 15 wickets.
In January, he scored 140 runs against India in Hyderabad, and he reached his century off of only 57 balls, making it the third-fastest hundred scored by a New Zealand batsman in one-day international cricket.
“You always feel for the player when an injury strikes, and especially when it means that they will have to miss a world event,” New Zealand coach Gary Stead said. “You always feel for the player when an injury strikes.”
“We’ve seen his exceptional skills in all three aspects of the game, and he was shaping up to be an important player for us at the world cup in India,” said Stead. “We’ve seen his exceptional skills in all three facets of the game.”
The 2019 World Cup final was played in England, where New Zealand’s team ended up losing to the hosts.