Mitch Hay will take over as wicketkeeper, while Michael Bracewell will remain the team’s captain in the ODIs.
New Zealand Cricket announced on Thursday that Tom Latham, the wicket-keeper batsman for New Zealand, will not play in the forthcoming ODI series against Pakistan due to a fractured right hand. During this week’s training, Latham was batting in the nets when he was hit by a delivery. An X-ray showed a fractured hand, necessitating a cast and at least four weeks of rest and recuperation. Latham will be replaced in the squad by Henry Nicholls, according to head coach Gary Stead. Michael Bracewell, the current T20I captain, will continue to lead in the ODIs, while Mitch Hay will take the wicketkeeping duties.
Henry has been playing well after coming back from a three-month injury layoff, and he will give the team invaluable experience and skills. We hope Tom a swift recovery because it is obviously disappointing to lose him as captain on the eve of the series. “With Michael doing a fantastic job throughout the T20I series, the team is in good hands,” Stead remarked.
A calf issue experienced in November kept Nicholls out of action for a large portion of this season, but he returned this month with five 50-plus scores in his six domestic innings. Nicholls has 78 ODI caps.Will Young, the opener, will be left out of the ODI squad for games two and three of the series in order to spend time with his wife while they anticipate the arrival of their first child, the selectors also revealed.
Young will participate in Saturday’s first game in his hometown of Napier before being replaced as the batting cover by Rhys Mariu, a 23-year-old Canterbury batsman who has received his first call-up, according to an announcement from NZC.
This trip has required flexibility because many players have been unavailable for various reasons. In addition to welcoming back Henry, it’s good to bring Rhys into the setting for the first time and provide possibilities for other players,” Stead stated.”We wish Will and his wife Elise all the best next week as they await their first child which is such a special and important time for them,” he stated.
Ahead of Saturday’s opening match at McLean Park, the New Zealand ODI team gathered in Napier on Thursday.
