ENG vs NZ: Kane Williamson Out Of 2nd Test Against England After Testing Positive For Covid
New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson has been ruled out of the upcoming 2nd Test against England after he tested positive for covid-19 on the eve of the match.
Ahead of the game which starts on June 10 at Trent Bridge, Williamson took a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) as he was experiencing minor symptoms on Thursday.
He returned a positive result and will now have to undergo isolation for a period of five days. Kiwi head coach Gary Stead confirmed that Tom Latham will be leading in Williamson’s absence.
“It’s such a shame for Kane to be forced to withdraw on the eve of such an important match. We’re all feeling for him at this time and know how disappointed he will be,” Stead said.
Williamson will be replaced by Hamish Rutherford, who has been playing in the County Championship for Leicestershire. He will be joining the team in Nottingham early on Friday morning.
“Hamish was with the Test squad earlier in the tour and has been playing for the Leicestershire Foxes in the T20 Vitality Blast,” he added.
Fortunately, the rest of the team returned negative results and the match will go ahead as scheduled. Williamson had returned to the Test side after a long injury layoff but couldn’t contribute much as he had scores of 2 & 15 in the first Test at Lord’s.
New Zealand squad:
Kane Williamson (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Trent Boult, Devon Conway, Colin de Grandhomme, Cam Fletcher (wk), Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryll Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Tim Southee, Neil Wagner, Will Young, Hamish Rutherford.
