Dubai, Nov 12: New Zealand wicketkeeper-batter Devon Conway on Thursday was ruled out of the final of the 2021 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and the subsequent tour of India due to a broken hand.
Conway sustained the injury in the semi-final match against England which New Zealand ended up winning. Frustrated after being dismissed, Conway hit his own bat and scans today confirmed that he had broken his fifth metacarpal in his right hand.
This is the second injury blow to New Zealand during the course of the tournament after Lockie Ferguson was ruled out on the day of their Super 12 opener against Pakistan due to a calf tear.
“He’s absolutely gutted to be ruled out like this at this time. Devon is hugely passionate about playing for the Black Caps and no one is more disappointed at the moment than he is – so we’re really trying to rally around him,” said Gary Stead, the head coach of New Zealand, about Conway.
“It looked like a pretty innocuous reactionary incident on the field, but the blow obviously caught the bat between the glove padding and while it’s not the smartest thing he’s done there’s certainly an element of bad luck in the injury.
“Devon is a great team-man and a very popular member of the side so we’re all feeling for him. He’s determined to support the team in any way he can for the remainder of the tour before he returns home to recover,” Stead went on to add.
New Zealand won’t be seeking any replacement for Conway.
“Due to the timelines we won’t be bringing in a replacement player for this World Cup or next week’s T20 series against India, but are working through our options for the Test series later this month,” the coach said.
New Zealand beat England in the semi-final on Wednesday, thanks to some late heroics from Jimmy Neesham and Daryl Michell and they will now face Australia in the final on Sunday. (IANS)
