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Bracewell to lead Blackcaps in T20 series against Pakistan
Sport Nation • March 11th, 2025 11:00 am
Photo: Photosport
Michael Bracewell will lead the Blackcaps for the first time on NZ soil for their Twenty20 series against Pakistan.
Fresh off his impressive Champions Trophy campaign with the Blackcaps on the subcontinent, Bracewell will take the reins for the five-match series, which starts at Christchurch's Hagley Oval on Sunday.
A veteran of 66 international appearances across all formats, Bracewell previously captained the Blackcaps in their white-ball series in Pakistan in April last year.
The spinner is one of seven players from the Blackcaps side which made the final of the Champions Trophy featuring in the T20 squad.
Bracewell stands in as captain for regular white-ball skipper Mitchell Santner, who's among a group of first-choice players unavailable due to IPL commitments including Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Glenn Phillips, and Rachin Ravindra.
Ish Sodhi has been recalled after missing the recent home series against Sri Lanka, while Ben Sears has recovered from the torn hamstring which ruled him out of the Champions Trophy.
With the selectors looking to manage the workload of their quicks after the Champions Trophy, Kyle Jamieson and Will O’Rourke have been included for the first three games of the series.
Matt Henry, who finished as the leading wicket-taker at the tournament despite missing the final through injury, has been selected for games four and five pending further medical assessment after arriving home.
Finn Allen, Jimmy Neesham and Tim Seifert have also been included in the squad after confirming their availability for the T20 World Cup warm-up series against India and Afghanistan in January and February having returned from their off-shore franchise commitments.
Bevon Jacobs, who was part of the squad for the recent T20 series against Sri Lanka, was unavailable due to IPL commitments, while Kane Williamson wasn’t considered for selection after making himself unavailable.
“We’re certainly starting to narrow our sights on the ICC T20 World Cup in India next February and March,” said selector Sam Wells.
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“We made it clear in our planning and communication with players that availability for that tournament and the build-up to it was required to be considered for this series against Pakistan.
“Half of this squad is only returning from the Champions Trophy on Wednesday and so we’re going to need to manage those players really carefully."
Each of the matches against Pakistan will be played as double-headers alongside the White Ferns, who take on Sri Lanka.
Blackcaps T20 squad to play Pakistan
Michael Bracewell (c)
Finn Allen
Mark Chapman
Jacob Duffy
Zak Foulkes (games 4 & 5)
Mitch Hay
Matt Henry (games 4 & 5)
Kyle Jamieson (games 1, 2 & 3)
Daryl Mitchell
Jimmy Neesham
Will O’Rourke (games 1, 2 & 3)
Tim Robinson
Ben Sears
Tim Seifert
Ish Sodhi
Finn Allen
Mark Chapman
Jacob Duffy
Zak Foulkes (games 4 & 5)
Mitch Hay
Matt Henry (games 4 & 5)
Kyle Jamieson (games 1, 2 & 3)
Daryl Mitchell
Jimmy Neesham
Will O’Rourke (games 1, 2 & 3)
Tim Robinson
Ben Sears
Tim Seifert
Ish Sodhi
Blackcaps & White Ferns T20 double-header schedule
Sunday 16 March at Hagley Oval, Christchurch:
White Ferns vs Sri Lanka, 10:15am
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 2:15pm
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 2:15pm
Tuesday 18 March at University of Otago Oval, Dunedin:
White Ferns vs Sri Lanka, 10:15am
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 2:15pm
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 2:15pm
Friday 21 March at Eden Park, Auckland:
White Ferns vs Australia, 2:45pm
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 7:15pm
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 7:15pm
Sunday 23 March at Bay Oval, Tauranga:
White Ferns vs Australia, 2:45pm
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 7:15pm
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 7:15pm
Wednesday 25 March at Sky Stadium, Wellington:
White Ferns vs Australia, 2:45pm
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 7:15pm
Blackcaps vs Pakistan, 7:15pm
Tune in for live commentary of every match of the Blackcaps & White Ferns T20 double-headers on the Sport Nation app - download via the App Store or Google Play - or discover your local frequency here.
