The veteran White Ferns and Otago Sparks opener fractured a bone in the little finger of her left hand while fielding against Auckland at Eden Park Outer Oval on Sunday and left the field.
She was unable to bat and is now in a race to be fit for the final, scheduled for the University Oval on March 1.
Otago Cricket Association general manager of performance Steve Martin said Bates was scheduled to see a consultant in Auckland this week. More would be known about her treatment plan and availability then.
But the timing of the injury is not terrible. The Sparks, who have already qualified for the final, do not play again until their final two round-robin games against the Central Hinds in Dunedin on February 22 and 23.
The final is a week later, so Bates has plenty of time to recover.
The White Ferns are back in action in early March as well. They are hosting Sri Lanka in three ODIs and three T20s.
The third T20 is in Dunedin on March 18. The White Ferns also have three T20s against Australia at the back end of March.
Otago Volts captain Luke Georgeson is also out with an injury. He has a hamstring complaint and is awaiting a scan.
Volts coach Ashley Noffke was hopeful he would not be sidelined for too long and was optimistic he would play again this season.
