New Zealand have withdrawn Kane Williamson and Kyle Jamieson from their upcoming T20I series against Bangladesh. The Black Caps took the decision as a precautionary measure before the Test series against South Africa and Australia.
The 33-year-old Williamson was earlier named as the Kiwis’ skipper for the series, but will now be replaced by Mitchell Santner. Williamson returned to competitive cricket in the World Cup after facing injury concerns over the last seven months or so.
Jamieson, on the other hand, has had issues with his hamstring and New Zealand refrained from taking a chance with him in the Bangladesh T20I series.
“We want both Kane and Kyle to be in the best possible place leading into the next block of Test cricket against South Africa and Australia. Based on discussions with the medical staff and the players it was decided a period of rehabilitation and conditioning was the best option for both of them,” New Zealand coach Gary Stead was quoted as saying.
The hosts, in the meantime, have roped in fast bowler Jacob Duffy and talented all-rounder Rachin Ravindra for the upcoming series.
“Jacob is an experienced T20 cricketer and always brings a lot when he is part of the Black Caps environment. He’s worked very hard on his white ball skills in recent seasons. Rachin adds to any environment he’s a part of and has a great desire to learn and develop his game – across all three formats,” Stead added.
New Zealand’s opening T20I against the Tigers is on Wednesday, December 27 at the McLean Park in Napier. Mount Maunganui will host the other two T20Is on December 29 and December 31 respectively.
Updated New Zealand squad for Bangladesh T20Is
Mitchell Santner (c), Finn Allen, Mark Chapman, Jacob Duffy, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee
