Cricket: Milne rested as Hesson takes no risks

Adam Milne of New Zealand celebrates the wicket of Dimuth Karunaratne of Sri Lanka. Photo by...
Adam Milne of New Zealand celebrates the wicket of Dimuth Karunaratne of Sri Lanka. Photo by Getty Images.
If you were looking forward to seeing Adam Milne thundering in during the fifth ODI at the University Oval today then you are out of luck.

You might have to settle for Kyle Mills instead, which is a bit like going from a Corvette to a Toyota - safe and comfortable but not quite as exciting.

Milne picked up a side strain during the four-wicket win against Sri Lanka in Nelson on Tuesday and the Black Caps speedster has been ruled out.

The stiff-looking right-armer did not bowl during a net session yesterday but the injury should not keep him sidelined too long.

Black Caps coach Mike Hesson said Milne is unlikely to play in game six on Sunday as well. But he could return for the final match in the series in Wellington on Thursday.

''He won't play this game but he has scrubbed up pretty well - so nothing major, but we are being quite cautious with it.

''He will start bowling, hopefully before the next game, and [as long as] he is fully pain-free without any incident then we will probably have him ready for the last game of this series,'' Hesson said.

''Adam has played a number of these games already and I think he is sitting good from a skill perspective, so four or five days on the sideline is not a bad thing.''

''It is one of those things when you are trying to bowl 150[kmh], if you do get a little bit of a twinge it is just not worth pushing through.''

That said, Milne will not be put on ice and will need to play some cricket before the Black Caps World Cup opener in Christchurch on February 14.

''You can't just put someone away for a long period of time and hope that their skills are going to be up to speed. We'll bring him back when he's ready but not before.''

With plenty of bowling options in the squad, Milne will not be missed too badly. Experienced medium-pacer Mills had a good workout in the nets and shapes as a likely replacement.

''[Mills] is an option for [today] but he'll play one of the two - we haven't decided yet.''

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan coach Marvan Atapattu confirmed fast bowler Lasith Malinga will not be seen in the series.

Malinga, who is in Sri Lanka's 15-man World Cup squad, is recovering from ankle surgery and is still experiencing some pain and stiffness.

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