Cricket: Injury set to cost Taylor $1m

Ross Taylor will undergo surgery today and faces at least four weeks on the sidelines. Photo / Getty Images

South African quick Morne Morkel is unlikely to have brought a smile to his IPL franchise yesterday.

Morkel and New Zealand captain Ross Taylor were due to be teammates at the Delhi Daredevils, when the IPL starts on April 4.

However, a nasty lifting delivery from Morkel shortly after lunch at the Basin Reserve broke a bone in Taylor's left forearm. Taylor, on 18, tried to bat on wearing an arm guard, but walked off one ball later and headed for hospital.

Taylor was traded to the Daredevils from the Rajasthan Royals in February. His current fee with the Daredevils is unknown but the Black Caps skipper was bought by the Royals for $US1 million ($NZ1.2m) in the 2011 player auction.

Taylor will undergo surgery today and faces at least four weeks on the sidelines. The IPL runs from next week until May 27.

NZC Medical Director Ian Murphy said: "The specialist confirmed that the best management for the fracture of his left ulna would be to undergo surgery.

"This will give him the best opportunity to recover with the actual return date determined by the speed of his recovery from surgery.

"It is not anticipated he will be able to play within the next four weeks but this will depend on how quickly the injury has healed and Ross's level of comfort."

Yesterday assistant coach Trent Woodhill speculated that the skipper might be able to bat on day five, if it is a question of balls rather than overs late in the day.

New Zealand's next assignment is the tour to the West Indies, which starts in late June. Taylor should be well over the injury by then but won't have had as much leadup time as he would have wanted.

It continued an unfortunate run for Taylor in his first full season as captain. He tore a calf muscle against Zimbabwe in Napier in late January and missed the entire limited-overs series against Zimbabwe and South Africa.

- David Leggat/Herald online