Wellington, Oct 7 (PTI) New Zealand batter Daryl Mitchell has been ruled out of the T20 Tri-Series in Christchurch after fracturing his hand during training at Lincoln on Friday.

The all-rounder sustained a blow to his right-hand while batting in the nets, with an X-Ray later revealing a fracture to his fifth metacarpal (pinkie finger).

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Team physio Theo Kapakoulakis confirmed Mitchell's hand had been placed in a cast which would need to remain on for at least two weeks.

Coach Gary Stead said some time was needed to consider a decision on Mitchell's availability for the ICC T20 World Cup, with the squad set to depart for Australia on October 15.

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“It's a real shame for Daryl to suffer this injury on the eve of an exciting period of cricket for the side,” Stead said in a NZC statement.

“Daryl's become a really important player to our T20 unit and we're certainly going to miss his all-round skills and versatility in the Tri-Series.

“With our first game of the World Cup in just over two weeks we need to take some to consider Daryl's recovery timeline and his potential involvement in the tournament,” he added.

Mitchell's replacement in the Tri-Series squad will be confirmed in due course.

New Zealand open their Tri-Series campaign against Pakistan at Hagley Oval on Saturday night.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)