Mitchell Santner ruled out, New Zealand announce squad, new captain for T20I series vs Australia

New Zealand white-ball captain Mitchell Santner has been ruled out of the upcoming three-match T20I series against Australia, set to be held in Mount Maunganui on October 1, 3, and 4. Santner, recovering from abdominal surgery, has failed to regain full fitness in time for the series.

In his absence, Michael Bracewell has been named captain of the 14-man squad. Bracewell previously led the side during the Pakistan tour earlier this year and will now be tasked with guiding a depleted New Zealand side into their first home series of the season. Meanwhile, the squad sees the return of fast bowlers Kyle Jamieson and Ben Sears, both of whom missed July’s tri-series in Zimbabwe due to personal and injury-related reasons.

Head coach Rob Walter expressed confidence in Sears’ comeback, praising his efforts in returning to full fitness over the past three months.

“He's worked incredibly hard over the last 12 weeks to be back on the park and done some awesome work there. So we're excited to see him back in the competitive fold. We're building a bigger base of fast bowlers, because we understand that the program is so busy these days, but fast bowling is a key requisite for performance. So we want to make sure we've got as many options as we possibly can have,” Walter said as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

However, the Kiwis continue to be hampered by injuries. Lockie Ferguson (hamstring) and Adam Milne (foot) join a growing list of absentees that includes Glenn Phillips, Finn Allen, and Will O'Rourke. Kane Williamson has made himself unavailable but is expected to return later for the England series.

Leg-spinner Ish Sodhi kept his spot after making an impact in Zimbabwe, while Devon Conway retains his place at the top of the order following a late call-up in July.

New Zealand T20I squad vs Australia

Michael Bracewell (c), Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes, Matt Henry, Bevon Jacobs, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Robinson, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi