• Source:ANI
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New Zealand captain Kane Williamson expressed satisfaction with his knee's performance while batting during the ICC Cricket World Cup warm-up match against Pakistan. Despite his ongoing recovery from a knee injury sustained during the Indian Premier League (IPL) in March, Williamson made a strong return to the game. He contributed to New Zealand's successful chase of a formidable 346-run target against Pakistan, which featured half-centuries from several Kiwi batsmen.

Although Williamson will be absent from the tournament opener against England on October 5, his ability to get some valuable time in the middle and contribute with the bat is a positive sign for the New Zealand team.

"Just great to get through some batting out in the middle and be part of a match, which was really nice and it (knee) held up pretty well," Williamson said after New Zealand's win as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.

The batter said that his knee needed a bit of icing after batting.

"It needed a little bit of icing afterward but it is all part of the process. Yeah, it was not a reality certainly five months ago and [I have] been quite fortunate with some of that recovery and to be named in the squad is really exciting for me and just really looking forward to getting out there again. It was nice to do that today," he added.

Williamson's improved level of fitness comes as a boost for New Zealand ahead of the World Cup. At one point, it seemed that he could miss the entire tournament, but was ultimately named to the squad as he continued to make a speedy recovery and was fine enough to be included.

His knee was heavily strapped up during the warm-ups leading to the match. He played as a specialist batter, not fielding in the first innings. He came in at number three and had a century partnership with Ravindra.

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During his return match, he dealt with pacer Hasan Ali's outswingers cautiously and eventually settled to find gaps at will. He also used some sweep shots, including a reverse sweep against spinners.

"It was largely pretty good, which was pleasing. Nice to sort of build on that. It was a fantastic hit-out obviously. Pakistan are an outstanding side. I mean both teams were trying to get what they wanted out of it, in terms of bowlers getting overs they needed and time in the legs. So, it is an exercise, but also nice to compete and do all those things. As a bowling unit and batting unit, plenty to take away from it. There are always things to work on and it was a great batting performance today. It was a really good surface and it is nice that we were able to put together partnerships and get time in the middle," he added.

Williamson will however, miss the opening match of his team in the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 against England as he continues to recover from knee surgery, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) announced the batter's availability update on Friday.

 

Inputs from ANI