Michael Bracewell is set to make his home debut as New Zealand’s captain in the forthcoming five-match T20I series against Pakistan following his impressive performance in the recently-concluded ICC Champions Trophy where New Zealand finished as runners-up, losing to India in the final.
“It’s a great honour and a real privilege to captain your country,” the all-rounder said in a press release. “I really enjoyed leading the side in Pakistan last year and we’ve got many players from that squad included for this series as well, which is nice.
Bracewell will join six other squad members at the training camp in Christchurch on Friday.
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The 34-year-old all-rounder, who has accumulated 66 international appearances across all formats since his 2022 debut, previously led the team during their white-ball tour of Pakistan in April last year. He expressed his enthusiasm about the opportunity to captain the side again, while the squad is understandably disappointed about falling at the last hurdle in the Champions Trophy.
“For the guys coming back from Dubai, there’s obviously a level of disappointment, but also a lot of pride in the way we were able to perform and represent New Zealand. We’ve loved all of the support we’ve received from afar and are certainly looking forward to getting back home and playing in front of our own fans and in front of full venues,” said Bracewell.
“Mitch Santner has done a great job since taking over as white-ball captain and I’ll really just be trying to build on his good work and create an enjoyable environment for the guys to perform in.
The T20 squad composition reflects notable absences due to IPL commitments, including Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra and limited-overs skipper Santner, resulting in a blend of seasoned players and returning talents.
Following his absence from the recent Sri Lanka home series, Ish Sodhi returns to the squad, while Ben Sears makes his comeback after recovering from a hamstring injury that cut short his Champions Trophy campaign last month.
“Pakistan are always a dangerous short-form side with lots of power and pace and we know they’ll be hurting after an early exit in the Champions Trophy,” Bracewell said.
The initial three matches will see fast bowlers Kyle Jamieson and Will O’Rourke, with the selection committee carefully monitoring the workload of pace bowlers post Champions Trophy.
Matt Henry, who claimed the most wickets in the Champions Trophy despite missing the final due to injury, is scheduled for games four and five, pending medical evaluation when the ODI squad returns from Dubai on Wednesday.
Notably, Kane Williamson opted out of the Pakistan series.
Selector Sam Wells emphasised the significance of the Pakistan series for multiple factors.
“We’re certainly starting to narrow our sights on the ICC T20 World Cup in India next February and March. 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. It’s nice to be welcoming back the likes of Ish, Kyle and Ben after time away from our T20 set-up.”
Gary Stead will serve as the head coach, working alongside Luke Ronchi and Jacob Oram, who will handle the responsibilities of batting and bowling coach, respectively.
Squad: 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
