Kane Williamson to miss World Cup flight

 

New Zealand will be without ill batsman Kane Williamson when they leave for the Cricket World Cup today.

Williamson has developed a chest infection and received medical advice that he should not fly with the team. He will undergo treatment, with the possibility of flying out in the coming days.

The rest of the 15-man squad were to leave today, ahead of warmup matches against Ireland in Nagpur on Saturday and India in Chennai on Wednesday next week.

New Zealand's opening pool match in the tournament is against Kenya in Chennai on February 20.

Williamson, 20, has played 11 one-day internationals for New Zealand, scoring 253 runs at an average of 25.3.

He is regarded as a fringe member of the Cup squad, unlikely to be part of the starting 11 if all are fully fit, having struggled to push on since scoring 108 against Bangladesh in Mirpur last October.