The injury that cemented Black Caps' squad

By Kris Shannon

The moment most influential to the Black Caps’ T20 World Cup squad selection happened not in Pakistan or the IPL but on a training pitch at home.

It was there, while preparing to depart for the subcontinent earlier this month, that seamer Adam Milne suffered an ankle injury that would require surgery and preclude his inclusion for the tournament in June.

And it was then, already close to confirming a squad that largely picked itself, that coach Gary Stead and selector Sam Wells had the toughest decision taken out of their hands.

There were no shocks in the 15-strong group tasked with winning a maiden men’s World Cup for New Zealand. Thirteen had previously played at a T20 showpiece while the other two — Matt Henry and Rachin Ravindra — were standout performers at last year’s ODI event.

Experience has long been an attribute ranked highly by the selectors and that meant there was little chance of an outsider playing their way into the team during the drawn series in Pakistan.

With the majority of the World Cup squad busy through franchise commitments over the border, a young team performed admirably against their full-strength hosts. But once Milne went down, and once more positive injury news was returned for openers Devon Conway and Finn Allen, the pieces had already fallen into place.

“When you go to World Cups, you want experience and you want people who know what it’s like,” Stead said. “That certainly doesn’t exclude those who put their hand up, and that’s what’s been exciting about the tour to Pakistan. We’ve seen some performances from younger players that were really exciting for our future.

“The message I had to them was, ‘Look, you haven’t been selected in this side, but in two years there’ll be another World Cup and that should be a big enough carrot for you guys to put pressure on these guys who are here’.”

It’s understandable to maintain faith in the players who have reached the semifinals of the past three T20 World Cups — complementing five straight final-four appearance in one-day cricket.

While it might have been tempting to add a jolt of youth in Ben Sears or Will O’Rourke — pacemen whose recent performances suggest long international careers — New Zealand see no need yet to end the Tim Southee and Trent Boult era.

Stead attributed Henry’s selection to his improvement and experience in death bowling, while Lockie Ferguson was always a lock, meaning Milne might have pushed out one of the middle-order trio of Jimmy Neesham, Mark Chapman or Michael Bracewell.

“The injury to Adam Milne was really tough on him but probably made it easier on us in some ways, in terms of getting the squad we wanted,” Stead said. “We didn’t get to the point of having to have that debate and argument because Milne was ruled out before then. He was definitely a strong contender for the squad.”

Tim Seifert was likely the only other player in that category, especially given the squad’s two chief wicketkeeping options were both carrying injuries. But Stead was content with the progress reports for Conway (thumb) and Allen (back), while Glenn Phillips could also take the gloves.

As seen with a red ball over summer, Phillips and Ravindra will be invaluable inclusions on what are expected to be turning pitches in the West Indies, especially in Guyana where the Black Caps will open their tournament.

With the top two progressing from a pool also featuring the hosts, Papua New Guinea and Uganda, New Zealand will reach the Super Eight if they can out-spin Afghanistan.

“Afghanistan in Guyana on a wicket that traditionally turns will possibly be a match that will be crucial,” Stead said. “We’ve got bowlers who provide us with a really varied lineup as well — left-armers, right-armers, spinners who go both ways.

“That balance part is important — if we play well and play with smarts then hopefully it will be a tournament we can win.”

Black Caps squad:

Kane Williamson (Captain)
Finn Allen
Trent Boult
Michael Bracewell
Mark Chapman
Devon Conway
Lockie Ferguson
Matt Henry
Daryl Mitchell
Jimmy Neesham
Glenn Phillips
Rachin Ravindra
Mitchell Santner
Ish Sodhi
Tim Southee

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission