New Zealand Cricket said Friday that Black Caps skipper Kane Williamson and standout seamer Kyle Jamieson had been removed from the three-match Twenty20 series against Bangladesh.
Despite being nominated to the first team, Williamson will require more rehabilitation after knee surgery last April, while Jamieson is nursing a hamstring issue, according to the Black Caps.
For the three Twenty20 games beginning December 27, they will be replaced by opener Rachin Ravindra and seamer Jacob Duffy. Mitchell Santner takes over as captain of the Black Caps.
Williamson and Jamieson were pulled on medical advice, according to head coach Gary Stead, with an eye on the Test series against South Africa and Australia in early 2024.
“We want both Kane and Kyle to be in the best possible place leading into the next block of Test cricket,” Stead stated in an e-mail.
“Based on discussions with the medical staff, it was decided a period of rehabilitation and conditioning was the best option for both.”
Williamson is scheduled to return for the T20 home series against Pakistan in January, which Jamieson will also miss, according to a Black Caps spokeswoman.
New Zealand has won both games in the one-day international series against Bangladesh, and the third ODI is scheduled for Saturday in Napier.
Mitchell Santner (captain), Finn Allen, Mark Chapman, Jacob Duffy, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glen Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee (revised T20 squad)