Four New Zealand players suffered injuries in the field while facing England in the final ODI of the four-match series at Lord’s today, including a broken and dislocated thumb for captain Tim Southee.
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Southee was attempting to take a catch off the final ball of the 14th over to dismiss Joe Root. However, he misjudged the chance and ended up taking a significant bash to his right thumb. He signalled immediately to the dressing room that he would need treatment and headed off the field. While the dropped catch didn’t have a significant impact on the game – Root only managed another 20 runs – the injury could have serious ramifications for New Zealand’s World Cup plans.
It was later confirmed that Southee had both dislocated and fractured a bone in his thumb, with further assessment to be made on the length of his recovery tomorrow. With less than three weeks to go before New Zealand’s opening game of the World Cup against England, a long lay-off period for Southee would see New Zealand at least start their campaign without their regular skipper.
Injury Update | An x-ray has confirmed that Tim Southee dislocated and fractured a bone in his right thumb while attempting to take a catch in the 14th over of the 1st innings. A timeline for his recovery will be established tomorrow when he undergoes further assessment. #ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/74zT4t9pGc
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) September 15, 2023
Southee wasn’t the first Black Cap to go down with an injury of the day. Finn Allen – on as a sub-fielder – had gone down two overs before Southee sustained his injury, once again attempting to take a catch off Root. Allen hurt his little finger on his right hand attempting to take a diving grab, and went off the field. He was later cleared of any significant damage to the digit.
Daryl Mitchell, who made a hundred in the first match of the series, also picked up a finger injury in the first few overs of England’s innings. Mitchell took the catch which dismissed Jonny Bairstow at slip, but dislocated his left ring finger in the process. He did later return to the field and bowled seven overs, as well as coming in at his regular position to bat.
To add to New Zealand’s problems, Ben Lister also left the field towards the end of England’s innings with a hamstring problem. There has been no official update on whether he will be able to bat or the status of his injury.
