Auckland: With more than two months to go for the T20 World Cup, New Zealand have announced a 15-man squad for the tournament. All-rounder Mark Chapman, pacer Kyle Jamieson and Todd Astle found a place in the squad for the tournament slated to start in the UAE from October 17.
Senior batsman Ross Taylor, who played his last T20I last November, has not made it to the squad. Also missing out is Colin de Grandhomme. Another pacer Adam Milne has been selected as the 16th man and will join the team for the tournament to replace a player in the squad in case of any injury
“The need to safeguard the wellbeing of our players and support staff is now very real, and we’ve endeavoured to do this by carefully managing their workloads over this winter’s massive playing programme,” said New Zealand Cricket (NZC) chief executive David White said in a statement.
Team News | The squads have been confirmed for the @T20WorldCup and white ball tours of Bangladesh and Pakistan. https://t.co/pb2FtmrVJN
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) August 9, 2021
NZC reasoned that Taylor had been selected for the tour of Pakistan but had opted out. “With the brief nature of the one-week series and the length of quarantine protocols, it was mutually agreed he would remain at home to prepare for the Indian Test tour and upcoming home summer,” the statement added.
These 16 players will however not be considered for the five T20Is against Bangladesh starting September 2 and the three ODIs in Pakistan beginning September 17.
The same squad will also play a T20I series against India before the T20 World Cup.
On allowing the New Zealand players to participate in the IPL, White said: “It’s a pragmatic approach. We’ve always tried to be realistic about the IPL and this particular issue is very much a one-off, caused by a unique set of circumstances.”
New Zealand T20 World Cup squad: Kane Williamson (c), Todd Astle, Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Adam Milne (injury cover).
