New Zealand all-rounder Rachin Ravindra has eased back into training after being struck in the face by the ball in a fielding mishap but he still has concussion protocols to pass before returning to the field, coach Gary Stead said.
Ravindra lost sight of the ball in the floodlights when attempting a catch and was hit in the forehead during a warm-up match for the Champions Trophy against Pakistan in Lahore last Saturday.
Though Ravindra passed his first Head Injury Assessment (HIA) immediately after the blow, Stead revealed the 25-year-old had suffered headaches in the following days and would need to tick off further HIA's to be passed fit.
He will therefore play no part in the ODI tri-series
"He's had a headache for a few days but that's, I guess, subsiding which is really good news," Stead said in Karachi, declining to put a time-line on Ravindra's return.
"He had a few balls tonight for the first time, which is good, but there's still a few more steps for him to go through before he would be considered fit to play."
There was better news for pace bowler Lockie Ferguson, who Stead expected to return to action for Sunday's Champions Trophy warmup against Afghanistan in Karachi, if not for the tri-series final.
Ferguson suffered a hamstring strain while playing in the United Arab Emirates' ILT20 competition.
Having played plenty of cricket in Pakistan and with star batsman Kane Williamson firing on all cylinders, New Zealand will head into the rebooted Champions Trophy hopeful of winning their second title and first since the 2000 tournament in Kenya.
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