New Zealand cricketers led by Kane Williamson left for the UK on Saturday for the World Test Championship final and their Test series against England. The two-Test series against the hosts begins on June 2, while the WTC final starts in Southampton from June 18. The Kiwis became the first team to qualify for the WTC final after Australia withdrew for travelling to South Africa for a Test series.
Meanwhile, the Black Caps official Twitter handle posted pictures of Kiwi cricketers at the airport to let know of their departure. “Time to fly!” tweeted the Black Caps handle before the team’s departure. Captain Kane Williamson, Kyle Jamieson and Mitchell Santner, who competed in the now-suspended IPL, are in Maldives and will fly to the UK from there.
New Zealand Cricketers Fly To UK
Time to fly! ✈️ #ENGvNZ #WTC21 pic.twitter.com/1sgKyOBawH
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) May 15, 2021
Meanwhile, lead Kiwi pacer Trent Boult could miss both Test matches against England. Team India, on the other hand, are expected to leave for UK in the first week of June after completing a hard quarantine in Mumbai.
Their squad for the WTC final and the Test series against England was announced by the BCCI last week. It’s a well-rounded squad with a good mix of young and experienced players. Batting and bowling departments have all been taken care of. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Hardik Pandya were axed from the squad.
Meanwhile, this will be the last tour for New Zealand’s wicketkeeper-batsman, 35-year-old BJ Watling, who recently announced that he was retiring from competitive cricket. Watling represented New Zealand in 73 Tests, 28 ODIs, and five T20Is. The Test series against England will be the last of his career.
New Zealand Squad For WTC Final & England Series
Kane Williamson (captain), Tom Blundell, Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Doug Bracewell, Devon Conway, Colin de Grandhomme, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling, and Will Young.
