'It will get right completely' - Coach Gary Stead confident about Kane Williamson's elbow injury recovery

New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson is set to miss the two-match home Test series against South Africa, which is slated to begin later this month, due to his long-standing elbow injury. The 31-year-old has carried the tendon injury for over a year, forcing him to miss plenty of cricket.

The strain injury, which can’t be corrected by surgery, also caused Williamson to miss New Zealand’s recent series against Bangladesh. His most recent Test was against India in November.

“We are very confident it will get right completely,” New Zealand head coach Gary Stead told media on Tuesday. “A lot of tendon injuries like this, they do linger for a while. At the moment, he has been somewhere around 14-15 months. They say they are usually gone in about 18 months’ time, so let’s hope that is the case with Kane.”

The New Zealand coach also stressed the fact that surgery was not an option for Williamson, who rather needed “gradual and consistent loading” to get back to full fitness.

“He’s back batting, he’s batting for periods of 20-25 minutes this week,” he added. He also said that the load that test matches put on Williamson might lead to him sitting out again.

 It is reported Williamson is targeting a return for shorter-format matches against the Netherlands from late March, although his Indian Premier League commitments with Sunrisers Hyderabad could influence that.

Whoever gets the chance, I’m sure will make the most of it: Gary Stead

With Williamson resting and veteran Ross Taylor retiring from international cricket, the Kiwis will be featuring an inexperienced batting line-up led by stand-in skipper Tom Latham. Stead confirmed skipper Tom Latham and Will Young will be opening the batting against South Africa, with the impressive Devon Conway at number three. The No.4 spot, previously held by Ross Taylor will be up for grabs. The most likely names up for contention for the no.4 are Daryll Mitchell and Henry Nicholls.

Speaking about the revamped batting order, Stead said: “Whoever gets that (chance) I’m sure will make the most of it. I think when you look at guys like Will Young and Daryl Mitchell and the way they’ve entered the test arena, it’s hard to argue that it’s not their time now.”

The New Zealand squad for the Test series against the Proteas features Hamish Rutherford, who last played a Test  in 2015, and all-rounder Colin De Grandhomme. Uncapped wicketkeeper Cam Fletcher and seamer Blair Tickner were also included in the squad.