Tim Seifert and Matt Henry will both be sidelined for the forthcoming Twenty20 International series against Australia. This will deal a heavy blow to the New Zealand cricket squad. In their place, Will Young and Ben Sears will join the team.
After the second Test match in Hamilton against South Africa, right-arm seamer Henry complained of hip pain. It will take some time for Henry to recover in time for the red-ball games against Australia. Meanwhile, earlier in the week, Seifert suffered a torn abductor while preparing for the Northern Districts.
Regarding the Black Caps’ injury situation, head coach Gary Stead expressed optimism that Henry would be available for the Test series. He said on the official website of New Zealand Cricket that , “Matt’s understandably disappointed, but a break for the T20Is will ensure he’s fully fit and ready to go for the Tests against Australia later this month. We’re gutted for Tim who has been a strong performer over recent series and is an important part of the squad. We’re hopeful he’ll make a swift recovery ahead of an important period of T20I cricket for the team.”
Who will replace the two New Zealand players for the T20I series against Australia?
Stead went on to say that Sears and Young, according to their domestic Twenty20 results, may affect any game that goes New Zealand’s way. The New Zealand Head coach said, “Ben showed in his recent performances against Pakistan that he is a talented T20 bowler capable of influencing games of cricket for New Zealand. Will has been a regular in the environment across formats for some time now and his recent performances for the Central Stags in the Super Smash show he his more than capable to contribute at this level.”
New Zealand Squad for T20I series: – Mitchell Santner (c), Finn Allen, Trent Boult (2nd and 3rd T20I), Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Adam Milne, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mark Chapman, Josh Clarkson, Ben Sears, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee (1st T20), Will Young.
