O’Rourke and Sears named in New Zealand squad for the Champions Trophy in Santner’s first global tournament as captain.
O’Rourke and Sears have been included in New Zealand’s squad for the Champions Trophy alongside allrounder Nathan Smith.
After playing one Test and seventeen T20Is, Sears, who was a travelling reserve for the T20 World Cup last year, just played his first game since April after recovering from an injury in the Super Smash. He is also expected to make his ODI debut. Early in his international career, O’Rourke made an impression in a variety of formats. Test matches have been particularly noteworthy.
Smith, on the other hand, will contribute bustling seam bowling and lower-order power with the bat.
Prior to the Champions Trophy, which will also include South Africa, the same team will play in the ODI tri-series in Pakistan. Jacob Duffy has been named as a stand-in for Lockie Ferguson, who is unable to play because of the ILT20. Devon Conway and Kane Williamson, who are at the SA20, will also have a short turnaround.
The ILT20 final will take place the day after the final in South Africa, which is scheduled for February 9. On February 8, New Zealand will play their opening match of the tri-series against Pakistan. February 10, they will play South Africa. On February 16, they play a warm-up match against Afghanistan.
“We’re currently blessed with a lot of quality players and that certainly made for some challenging selection discussions,” head coach Gary Stead said. “Ultimately, we’ve gone with the squad that will offer us the best options to perform well in the expected conditions in Pakistan and the UAE. We’re lucky to have a large chunk of the group with significant international and tournament experience to draw upon.
“The tournament format is a unique one in that you have to hit the ground running which means our preparation in the pre-leading Tri Series is really important. It’s going to be a great occasion opening the tournament against hosts in Pakistan in Karachi and we can’t wait to get over there and get stuck in.”
For the first time, Mitchell Santner will captain New Zealand in a major competition. He will be able to draw on the expertise of players like Tom Latham and Kane Williamson.
In addition to spin-bowling all-rounder Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman and Will Young have earned berths.
For the group stage, New Zealand is paired with Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. Hence, they will fly to Dubai to play India.