New Zealand have named a 15-member squad for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. Veteran Ross Taylor and all-rounder Colin de Grandhomme are the major exclusions from that squad.
New Zealand became the first team to announce the squad for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, which will start on the 17th of October in UAE and Oman. The mega event is more than three months away and yet, the Blackcaps have decided to name the 15-man squad.
Ross Taylor is a big exclusion from the squad. The veteran middle-order batsman last played a T20I back in November 2020 against West Indies at home. In that series, he batted twice and was runout on 0 once and remained unbeaten on 0 without facing a ball the other time.
The other notable exclusion is that of Colin de Grandhomme. He last featured in a T20I for New Zealand back in January 2020 against India and in fact, his last white-ball game for New Zealand came in March 2020. New Zealand have named James Neesham and Daryll Mitchell their seam-bowling all-rounders, and there was no place for de Grandhomme.
Moreover, there are three frontline spinners in the squad. Todd Astle has received a call-up. The 34-year-old leg-spinner has played a mere four T20Is. Leg-spinner Ish Sodhi and left-arm spinning all-rounder Mitchell Santner were the expected names. Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Lockie Ferguson and Kyle Jamieson are the fast bowlers that have been picked. Adam Milne has been named as the injury replacement and is the 16th player in the squad.
Kane Williamson, Martin Guptill, Devon Conway, Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert and Mark Chapman form the batting core. Chapman is all set to play his second T20 World Cup. He played the 2014 edition for Hong Kong.
New Zealand are scheduled to have a lengthy time away from home and are set for a four-month Asian tour. They will play five T20Is in Bangladesh, starting on the 1st of September. That will be followed by a white-ball tour to Pakistan which comprises of three ODIs and five T20Is before the team convenes for the mega T20 World Cup.
The squads picked for the Bangladesh and the Pakistan tours are very different from the one that is picked for the T20 World Cup. None of the players picked for the showpiece event will take part in the T20I series in Bangladesh or the ODI series in Pakistan. Todd Astle, Mark Chapman, Martin Guptill and Ish Sodhi will join the squad ahead of the five-match T20I series in Pakistan.
“I’m satisfied we’ve selected strong squads for all our touring commitments this winter. As the Black Caps proved in England earlier this year, we have good depth in the New Zealand game and I’m confident all the squads chosen will acquit themselves well,”
the New Zealand Cricket (NZC) chief executive David White was quoted saying.
White also confirmed that the New Zealand players who are a part of various IPL franchises will be allowed to return to the league in the UAE in September when it restarts. He felt it was a ‘pragmatic approach’.
“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,” .
White added
New Zealand will be looking to better their record in T20 World Cups. They have a win-loss record of 15-13, but they’ve made it to the semi-finals only twice (2007 and 2016) and have never reached the final. The Kane Williamson-led side is placed in a group alongside India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and will cut out their task.
