New Zealand has announced their Test squad for the upcoming tour of Asia, where they will face Afghanistan and Sri Lanka in September. Tim Southee will lead the Blackcaps as they resume their red-ball cricket action.
The tour begins with a one-off Test match against Afghanistan, which will take place in Greater Noida, India. This match will not be part of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 cycle since Afghanistan is not a participant in the championship. However, the subsequent two-match Test series against Sri Lanka will count towards the WTC points.
New Zealand coach Gary Stead highlighted the challenges of touring the subcontinent, particularly for pace bowlers, due to the pitches' nature and the region's heat and humidity. "Test tours to the subcontinent can pose tough questions for pace bowlers. We’re keeping an open mind about the conditions but understand that all our bowling options may be needed across different Tests. Tim and I have discussed the need to manage the workloads of the pace bowlers, including himself, to best serve the team," said Stead, as reported by the ICC.
Stead also emphasised the importance of the points available in the Sri Lanka series for New Zealand's chances of reaching the WTC finals in England next year. Reflecting on their previous tour, Stead added, "We secured one win from the two-Test series in challenging conditions in Bangladesh last December and are eager to build on that. The entire squad is looking forward to testing their skills in the longest format of the game in the subcontinent."
New Zealand Squad:
Tim Southee (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Tom Latham (vc), Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ben Sears, Kane Williamson, Will Young