Central Stags DOUG BRACEWELL and BLAIR TICKNER have both been selected in the BLACKCAPS squad for the opening T20 International against Pakistan at Eden Park this Friday evening.

The pair will head from Nelson's Saxton Oval, where Bracewell is captaining New Zealand A against Windies A, to Auckland after NZC named distinct squads for the first and subsequent T20 matches due to the Gillette Test at the Basin Reserve.

With the T20i series scheduled to start just three days after the current Test - and including a 22 December match under lights in Napier, Kane Williamson and Trent Boult; and Tim Southee, Kyle Jamieson and Daryl Mitchell will only be available for the second and third games of the series: in Hamilton on Sunday December 20 and at McLean Park on the Tuesday December 22, respectively.

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Auckland Aces speedster Lockie Ferguson was withdrawn from the squad after scans revealed a bone stress injury of his lumbar spine. More details of his expected rehabilitation time will be known once the results of further imaging are available.

Wellington Firebirds paceman Hamish Bennett was also ruled out of the series with an abdominal tear sustained during practice before Round Four of The Ford Trophy. He’ll target a return to play in the Dream11 Super Smash which gets underway on December 24.

Otago Volts pace bowler Jacob Duffy has earned his first call-up to the BLACKCAPS after impressive performances in domestic cricket and for New Zealand A. The 26-year-old’s been selected for the first game and will assemble with the squad in Auckland on Tuesday December 15.

After having his first game as captain washed out after 2.2 overs, Mitchell Santner will take the skipper’s armband for the series opener at Eden Park, before taking his first break since August.

His spinning spot will be backed up by leg-spinning incumbent Ish Sodhi and the recalled Todd Astle, whose last T20i came against Sri Lanka in September last year when he claimed 3-28 in a losing cause in Pallekele.

Blair Tickner, Doug Bracewell (above) and Mark Chapman are included for game one of the series before making way for the Test players to return.

Selector Gavin Larsen said this was one of the more challenging squads he has had to select.

“A combination of form, injuries, and the overlapping of series has certainly added some complexity to this announcement,” he said.

“I’d like to acknowledge the commitment of the all the players who are having to show a large degree of flexibility and understanding this summer.

“It’s great to have the class of Kane and Trent returning to our T20i side, having missed the West Indies series after their starring roles in the IPL in November.

“Kane will return and lead the side for games two and three, but we’ll obviously need to take a wait and see approach in relation to the arrival of his and Sarah’s first child. Chapman’s in the squad for the opening match at Eden Park and is on stand-by for Kane for the remaining games of the series.

“Glenn Phillips and Devon Conway's inclusion and the return of Kane means we’ve left out Ross Taylor. This was, as you’d imagine, a very tough decision as Ross has been a consistent performer for us, but unfortunately we just couldn’t find room in the squad for him due to the quality and form of the other batsmen.

“It’s a special time for Jacob Duffy who’s taken his game to another level this summer, and I know he’s excited to join the BLACKCAPS' camp for the first time.

“The injury to Lockie is obviously a concern considering what he brings to our bowling attack and we’re awaiting more information around his rehabilitation.

“We’ve got just these three T20 Internationals remaining this year, before what will be a star studded Dream11 Super Smash where we hope to see all players present their cases for inclusion in the remaining T20I series against Australia and Bangladesh in February and March.”

BLACKCAPS T20 SQUAD : GAME 1

DOUG BRACEWELL - Central Stags

BLAIR TICKNER - Central Stags

Mitchell Santner (c) - Northern Knights

Todd Astle - Canterbury Kings

Mark Chapman - Auckland Aces

Devon Conway - Wellington Firebirds

Jacob Duffy - Otago Volts - uncapped

Martin Guptill - Auckland Aces

Scott Kuggeleijn - Northern Knights

Jimmy Neesham - Wellington Firebirds

Glenn Phillips - Auckland Aces

Tim Seifert (w) - Northern Knights

Ish Sodhi - Northern Knights

BLACKCAPS T20 SQUAD GAMES 2 + 3

Kane Williamson (c) - Northern Knights

Todd Astle - Canterbury Kings

Trent Boult - Northern Knights

Devon Conway - Wellington Firebirds

Martin Guptill - Auckland Aces

Kyle Jamieson - Auckland Aces

Scott Kuggeleijn - Northern Knights

Daryl Mitchell - Canterbury Kings

Jimmy Neesham - Wellington Firebirds

Glenn Phillips - Auckland Aces

Tim Seifert (w) - Northern Knights

Ish Sodhi - Northern Knights

Tim Southee  - Northern Knights

Article added: Saturday 12 December 2020