No Williamson in New Zealand’s squad for Zimbabwe Tests

AUCKLAND: New Zealand Cricket (NZC) on Monday, announced a 15-member squad for the two-match away series against Zimbabwe, scheduled to run from July 30 to August 11 in Bulawayo.

The squad does not feature key players like Kane Williamson and Michael Bracewell for the series, which is not a part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC).

Williamson was signed by Middlesex for the County Championship, while he will also be representing London Spirit in The Hundred.

Bracewell, on the other hand, is playing for MI New York in the Major League Cricket (MLC), underway in the United States of America until July 14.

New Zealand’s newly-appointed all-format head coach Rob Walter lauded Williamson and Bracewell for their transparency about their availability for the tour.

"Kane and Michael were up front with New Zealand Cricket about their availability for this tour during the contracting process," Walter said.

"While all Test matches are hugely special and important, the fact these Tests aren't part of the ICC World Test Championship did influence the discussions on this occasion."

The Blackcaps were also forced to shuffle their bowling attack as Kyle Jamieson and Ben Sears were unavailable. Jamieson is awaiting the birth of his first child, while Sears is recovering from a side strain.

Their absence paved the way for 25-year-old pacer Matthew Fisher to earn his maiden Test call-up.

The right-arm pacer has played 14 first-class matches and taken 51 wickets at a remarkable average of just 24.11, which pushed his case for the maiden call-up.

Walter shared that they are most excited about Fisher as he is one of the fastest bowlers in New Zealand and could be their X-factor on the upcoming tour.

"Matt's someone we're really excited about. He's one of the fastest bowlers in the country and we think he's got an X-factor,” said Walter.

“We're blessed to have a large number of strong fast bowlers in this country and we're looking forward to adding Matt into that mix now, giving him a little bit of touring experience and a taste of what it means to be part of the Black Caps."

For the unversed, Bulawayo’s Queens Sports Club will host both the fixtures from July 30 to August 3 and August 7 to 11, respectively.

New Zealand Test squad: Tom Latham (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matt Fisher, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Will O'Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Nathan Smith and Will Young.