NZ vs PAK | Ross Taylor dropped for T20Is against Pakistan; Conway and Phillips included
Following a bad spell of shows in the West Indies series, Gavin Larsen has announced that for the Pakistan series, Devon Conway and Glenn Phillips gets the nod ahead of Ross Taylor, who is dropped. Jacob Duffy has been included in the squad while Lockie Ferguson has been withdrawn from the squad.
On Saturday, New Zealand announced itâs 18-man T20I squad for the upcoming series against Pakistan which follows shortly after the conclusion of the second Test against West Indies. Veteran white-ball star Ross Taylor was dropped from the 18-man squad for the three-match T20I series against Pakistan, with the return of Kane Williamson into the fold. However, a host of Test stars wonât be available for the first T20I, including Kane Williamson, Trent Boult, along with Tim Southee, Kyle Jamieson and Daryl Mitchell.Â
The squad also sees the comeback of the leg-spinner Todd Astle and seamer Blair Tickner while pacer Jacob Duffy would be in line for a T20I debut. Tickner, Mark Chapman and Doug Bracewell only find themselves in the squad for the first encounter, with Mitchell Santner skippering the side. Glenn Phillips and Devon Conway, who put on an impressive spell in the series against West Indies earlier find themselves higher on the pecking order as Taylor drops out from the squad.Â
"We were thrilled Glenn and Devon were able to take their opportunities so well in the previous series and we're keen to give them the chance to back that up against a strong Pakistan T20 outfit," said selector Gavin Larsen on Saturday (December 12), reported Cricbuzz. Â
"Their inclusion and the return of Kane means we've left out Ross Taylor. This was, as you'd imagine, a very tough decision as Ross has been a consistent performer for us, but unfortunately, we just couldn't find room in the squad for him due to the quality and form of the other batsmen,â he added.Â
Squad for 1st T20I: Mitchell Santner (c), Todd Astle, Doug Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Martin Guptill, Scott Kuggeleijn, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert (wk), Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner
Squad for 2nd and 3rd T20Is:Â Kane Williamson (c), Todd Astle, Trent Boult, Devon Conway, Martin Guptill, Kyle Jamieson, Scott Kuggeleijn, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert (wk), Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee