ICC Cricket World Cup: Fast bowler Lockie Ferguson is set to captain New Zealand for the first time in international cricket during the upcoming three-match ODI Series against Bangladesh in Dhaka, said New Zealand Cricket (NZC) on Saturday.
Ferguson, who recently led the team in tour matches in England, will captain the side in the absence of regular ODI captain Kane Williamson as he continues to recover from a right knee injury, and his deputy Tom Latham, who will miss the series to have time at home before the ICC Cricket World Cup and Test tour to 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,” said head coach Gary Stead in a statement.
Along with Latham, Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner and Tim Southee will be missing the ODI series against Bangladesh.
NZC added that the regular players are given a short break to focus on, and prepare for, the ODI World Cup tournament, for which they will assemble only 12 days after the start of the Bangladesh series.
The need to manage player workloads sees the squad feature an experienced core including five players from the 2019 Men’s ODI World Cup squad and a group of players newer to ODI cricket.
“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,” added Stead.
NZC also said Mark Chapman and Jimmy Neesham weren’t considered for selection because the tour coincides with the arrival of or shortly after the birth of their first children, respectively.
The absence of many regular players means Dean Foxcroft has earned his maiden selection in a New Zealand ODI Squad fresh from his T20I debut last month against the United Arab Emirates.
“Any time a player is selected for the first time it’s exciting and Dean’s shown as the Volts’ leading white-ball run scorer last summer the talent he has. We were impressed with the way he came into the group with the T20 Squad, and this will be another great opportunity to keep learning in our environment,” stated Stead.
The three ODIs between New Zealand and Bangladesh will be held on September 21, 23 and 26 with the teams then heading to India for the Men’s ODI World Cup to be held from October 5 to November 19.
Regular batting coach Luke Ronchi will lead the coaching group in Bangladesh as head coach with Shane Jurgensen in his usual role as bowling coach and Ian Bell continuing from the ODI series against England as batting coach.
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