Under the leadership of veteran fast bowler Tim Southee, New Zealand has announced a 15-member squad for the first three Test matches in Asia. The opening red-ball game will be against Afghanistan, which will take place in Greater Noida, while the next two will be against Sri Lanka, both of which are expected to be in Galle.
The lion’s share of the squad is quite similar to the one that faced a 2-0 series defeat at home at the start of the year against Australia. The left-handed opening batter Devon Conway has returned to the Test squad after missing the second half of the summer due to a finger injury, which ruled him out of action for the next five and half months.
Kane Williamson, who shared his 100th Test landmark for New Zealand with Southee, has featured in the squad along with Glenn Philips and a new sensational in the team, Rachin Ravindra.
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The squad has seen five spin bowling options, with the likes of all-rounders Mitchell Santner, Micheal Bracewell, and the left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel, who enjoyed ten wickets in his last Asia Test at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, back in the squad.
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Santner, who made his debut in the longest format of the game almost nine years ago at the Adelaide Oval, has featured in only 26 Tests for New Zealand, having recorded 53 wickets at an average of nearly 40, with a best of 3/34 in an innings.
The 34-year-old Ajaz Patel’s last Test came in 2023 when they faced hosts Bangladesh in Mirpur. The spinner has picked up 62 wickets in 16 Tests, at an average of almost 30, celebrating four-wicket hauls, besides having a best of 10/119 in an innings.
The same goes with Bracewell, who played his last red-ball game for New Zealand at the start of last year. In eight games of the format, he has managed only 259 runs at an average of under 20, with one half-century, and picking up 24 wickets at an average of over 40.
Southee will partner Matt Henry, Ben Sears, and Will O’Rourke in the pace department. Despite being the captain of the maiden World Test Champions, he may not be part of all the games in this format, as their head coach Gary Stead expressed in the presser.
“Test tours to the sub-continent can ask some really tough questions of pace bowlers due to the nature of the pitches and the heat and humidity.” He revealed in the press conference. “While we’re going over with an open mind around conditions, there is an understanding that all our bowling options may be needed across the different Tests.”
“Tim and I have discussed this and the need during these overseas tours to balance the workloads of the pace-bowlers, including himself, to ensure the team is best served,” Stead told the reporters.
It’s still unsure if Williamson will play the Afghanistan game starting on September 09. This game won’t be part of the third ongoing cycle of the WTC 2023-25.
“We know how important the points in Sri Lanka will be to our chances of pushing for a finals spot in England next year. We managed one win from the two-Test series in challenging conditions in Bangladesh last December and are keen to build on that.” Stead added. “We managed one win from the two-Test series in challenging conditions in Bangladesh last December and are keen to build on that.”
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They will fly to Sri Lanka for two Tests, which will begin on September 18 and 26, both expected to be in Galle.
New Zealand Test squad for Afghanistan and Sri Lanka Tests
Tim Southee (captain), Tom Blundell (wk), Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Tom Latham (vice-captain), Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ben Sears, Kane Williamson, Will Young
