Kane Williamson has begun facing throw downs in the nets once again as he continues his recovery after undergoing surgery for a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. Williamson posted a short clip of him batting on Instagram on August 1 with the caption "Nice to be back in the nets with the bat in hand for a few throws." Williamson had ruptured his ACL while playing for Gujarat Titans in the opening match of IPL 2023 on March 31. He had jumped up on the deep square leg boundary to intercept a shot from Chennai Super Kings opener Ruturaj Gaikwad, and though he saved the six he landed awkwardly on his right leg and went down immediately.

He had to be carried off the field and was subsequently ruled out of the IPL and possibly even the 2023 ODI World Cup at the time. Williamson returned to New Zealand and had surgery in April, and it was later reported that if he wasn't fit to play the World Cup in India, he might still travel with the team as a mentor. However, in June, news emerged that Williamson had not given up on being able to play the World Cup and there remained an outside chance he would recover in time for the tournament that starts with New Zealand playing England in Ahmedabad on October 5. "Very much just trying to keep it week-to-week at the moment," Williamson had said in June. "I haven't had such a long-term injury before but talking to other people that have, the journey is a bit of a long one so if you look too far ahead, it probably can become a little bit daunting. "Whereas, one week at a time, ticking off those small markers, those little wins that are nice to experience. But also knowing that the journey won't be completely smooth and you have a few setbacks along the way that you have to navigate.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)