Tom Latham has been appointed captain of an inexperienced New Zealand team for their upcoming T20 series against Sri Lanka and the five-match series in Pakistan. This will be Latham’s return to the shortest format of the game after almost two years. The team will miss the services of Kane Williamson and Tim Southee, who will be playing in the Indian Premier League.
Coach Mike Stead has praised Latham for his leadership skills, citing his successful stint as captain of an inexperienced T20 squad in Bangladesh in 2021. Stead also highlighted Latham’s ability to adapt to different batting positions and his power and range of shots.
New Zealand’s squad includes two potential debutants, former South Africa under-19 captain Chad Bowes and seamer Henry Shipley, who made his one-day international debut in January. They have been included in the squad for both series.
The team will first play Sri Lanka in three T20s in Auckland, Dunedin, and Queenstown in the first week of April. This will be followed by three T20s against Pakistan in Lahore and two in Rawalpindi from April 14-24.
Stead will not be leading the team for the Pakistan T20s, with Shane Jurgensen taking over as captain. However, Stead will return to lead the team for the subsequent five one-day matches against Pakistan.
The full squad for both series includes Tom Latham (captain), Chad Bowes, Mark Chapman, Matt Henry, Ben Lister, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Seifert (not Pakistan series), Henry Shipley, Ish Sodhi, and Will Young. For the Pakistan series only, the squad includes Dane Cleaver, Cole McConchie, and Blair Tickner.
