Tim Southee Ruled Out Of ENG vs NZ Match In ICC World Cup 2023, Confirms Stand-In Skipper Tom Latham

New Zealand pacer Tim Southee has been ruled out of the team’s first match against defending champions England in the ODI World Cup 2023. Stand-in skipper Tom Latham has confirmed the unavailability of Tim Southee for the selection for their tournament opener.

Kane Williamson was already ruled out of the first match, as the team didn’t want to rush his selection. Williamson has made exceptional progress in his recovery from injury and played in the two warm-up matches. He also played in the second match against Pakistan.

Tim Southee Is Unavailable For Selection – Tom Latham

Speaking ahead of the first match against England, Tom Latham confirmed that both Kane Williamson and Tim Southee will be unavailable for the team’s upcoming match. He stated that Southee’s recovery is progressing well after the surgery.

“No Kane and no Tim as well. He (Southee) is unavailable for selection. He is recovering nicely, it has been nearly two weeks post-surgery, so fingers crossed he keeps recovering.”

“It’s a bit of a day-by-day process. But fingers crossed he’ll be available sooner rather than later as well,” Latham told reporters.

Southee sustained the injury during the final ODI match against England three weeks ago. He underwent successful surgery for his dislocated thumb. He was rested for the two warm-up matches.

We Are Hard To Beat On The Day – Tom Latham

Tom Latham emphasized that the team is solely focused on their own preparations rather than thinking about external predictions. He noted that the playing conditions in this World Cup are different from the previous editions.

“We are not focused on what people are predicting; from our point of view we are solely focused on what we have to do,” Latham further added.

“If we can play our brand of cricket in these conditions — which is pretty different to the last two ODI World Cups, in Australia and England. If we play to the best of our ability then we are hard to beat on the day.”

The Black Caps will lock horns with the Jos Buttler-led England team at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on October 5.

Also read: Tim Southee Likely To Miss ENG vs NZ Match In ICC World Cup 2023 Due To Injury – Report