WELLINGTON: On Friday, New Zealand’s cricket board (NZC) announced the withdrawal of Kane Williamson, the team’s captain, and Kyle Jamieson, the paceman, from the squad set to compete against Bangladesh in a three-match T20 International series.
After undergoing surgery earlier this year, Williamson will engage in extra knee rehabilitation and strengthening. Meanwhile, Jamieson, dealing with a hamstring injury, will be substituted by Rachin Ravindra and Jacob Duffy, with Mitchell Santner taking the reins as the team captain in Williamson’s absence.
“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,” coach Gary Stead said in a news release.
“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 clinched victory in the one-day international series against Bangladesh this week ahead of the final match scheduled for Saturday. Following this, the teams will kick off the T20I series in Napier on December 27, followed by matches in Tauranga on December 29 and December 31.
These T20 games serve as crucial preparation for the upcoming Twenty20 World Cup set to be held in the West Indies and the United States in June.
The squad for the matches includes Mitchell Santner as captain, along with Finn Allen, Mark Chapman, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Rachin Ravindra, and Jacob Duffy.
