Lockie Ferguson will be making his International cricket captaincy debut in the upcoming three-match ODI Series against Bangladesh in Dhaka, as announced by New Zealand Cricket (NZC) on Saturday.
Ferguson, who took leadership of the squad during the tour matches in England, will step in as captain while their regular ODI captain, Kane Williamson, recovers from a right knee injury. Tom Latham, the vice-captain, will also be away from the series as he takes some time off at home before gearing up for the ICC Cricket World Cup and the forthcoming Test visit to Bangladesh.
Along with Latham, Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner and Tim Southee will be missing the ODI series against Bangladesh.
“Lockie is an experienced bowler at the international level, and this is an opportunity for him to really lead from the front with not just the bowling group but the team as a whole. He stepped into the role for the warm-up matches in England and led a group, with a lot of moving parts, well,” New Zealand’s head coach Gary Stead said in a statement.
NZC also indicated that the regular players will be given an opportunity to concentrate on and get ready for the ODI World Cup tournament. They will come together just 12 days after the opening of the Bangladesh series. In order to ensure the well-being of the players, the squad features a seasoned nucleus, containing five individuals who were part of the 2019 Men’s ODI field Cup team.
“We have a very full schedule between now until the end of our tour to Pakistan in April including the World Cup and the start of the new World Test Championship cycle so trying to keep players and staff fresh and ready at the right times is paramount.”
“Balancing workloads also provides opportunities and it’s exciting to have different players in the group and learning in an environment like Bangladesh. It can be a challenging place to tour and getting used to different conditions quickly will be important over the next few months,” Stead further added.
NZC also mentioned that Mark Chapman and Jimmy Neesham were not part of the selection process due to their travels coinciding with the anticipated arrival of their first children, respectively.
The fact that many regular players are absent resulted in Dean Foxcroft gaining his first-ever selection in a New Zealand ODI Squad, following his T20I debut just last month against the United Arab Emirates.
New Zealand and Bangladesh are scheduled to compete in three ODIs on September 21, 23, and 26, following which they will make their way to India for the Men’s ODI World Cup, slated to take place from October 5 to November 19.
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