The inclusion of Tom Blundell, the uncapped wicket-keeper, was the big news as New Zealand became the first team to announce their 15-man squad for the 2019 World Cup.
Blundell is a familiar face – he’s already played two Tests, scoring a century on debut against West Indies in 2017 – but has a mostly modest record in List A cricket: in 40 matches, he has 762 runs at just 23.81. But he is widely recognised as an extremely skilled gloveman.
Apart from Blundell, the other big inclusion was that of Ish Sodhi, the leg-spinner, who was picked over Todd Astle. Sodhi has 39 wickets in 30 ODIs, and will fill the non-negotiable role of wrist-spinner in the squad.
That apart, there were no surprises. Kane Williamson will lead squad. Ross Taylor will play his fourth World Cup – the seventh New Zealander to do so – while Tim Southee, Martin Guptill and Williamson himself will be playing their third tournament.
The announcement itself was a rather charming presentation, and quite different from the usual monotonous press conference. It was made at the Tai Tapu School, on the outskirts of Christchurch, and the press conference was led by two students, opening a “special school assembly”. David White, the New Zealand CEO, then took over.
Squad: Kane Williamson (c), Ross Taylor, Tom Latham (wk), Tom Blundell (wk), Mitchell Santner, Colin de Grandhomme, Lockie Ferguson, Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Colin Munro, Ish Sodhi, Henry Nicholls, Martin Guptill, Matt Henry, Jimmy Neesham
