"It's been a bit of a long slog" - Kane Williamson on his elbow injury

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has provided an update on his long-standing elbow injury that has kept him out of international cricket for a while. The right-handed batter said that his batting load has increased as things are looking encouraging.

Williamson hasn't been active in international cricket since the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE. The 31-year old was last seen during the first Test against India in Kanpur in November, and has been nursing an elbow injury since then. Head coach Gary Stead revealed that a surgery looks unlikely, but recovery could take time.

Williamson has said that he has had to slog for a long time, and hopes everything comes to fruition. The former number one Test batter added that he has been slowly increasing his batting load, as the injury has been healing well.

"It's improving; it's been a bit of a long slog. Hopefully, this time gives it gets what it needs; it will be nice to put it behind me. It does seem to be progressing quite well - in last small period, my batting load has started to increase quite a bit more; it's looking positive," the 31-year old said, as quoted by NZherald.com.

The Tauranga-born player had earlier expressed frustration at his elbow injury, saying he feels like cutting his arm off.

The BlackCaps captain, who won the Sportsman of the Year award at the Halberg Awards, said it has been a peculiar injury, something he thinks most people haven't had to deal with.

"I very much think South Africa will be better for the outing" - Kane Williamson

Proteas captain Dean Elgar. (Image Credits: Getty)

The elegant right-handed batter, who is sidelined for the ongoing series against South Africa, said everything was perfect for New Zealand in the first Test. Expecting the Proteas to bounce back in the second, Williamson added:

"We couldn't have hoped for much better in the first Test. Everybody bowled beautifully; there were a number of great contributions with the bat, and we caught everything - it was one of those days. I very much think South Africa will be better for the outing."

New Zealand crushed South Africa by an innings and 276 runs in the opening Test of the series in Christchurch. The hosts will now look for a historic series win by winning the second Test that starts on February 25.