Adam Milne, Lockie Ferguson, Ben Sears, Will O’Rourke, Matt Henry, and Kyle Jamieson. The list of fast bowlers is amazing. Additionally, none of them were present when New Zealand concluded their ODI series against England.
Alongside Zak Foulkes, Henry helped the host team seize control of England’s fragile top order in the opening match in Mount Maunganui before leaving due to injury. Before it began, the others were sidelined. Even so, New Zealand prevailed 3-0. It maintained their impressive home record, which has seen them win 25 of 29 ODIs since falling to India 4-1 in 2019.
Although Harry Brook was as eager to lament that he hadn’t won any in the series, captain Mitchell Santner acknowledged that the toss played a significant role in Wellington.
However, this shouldn’t take away from New Zealand’s outstanding display of depth.
In a heartwarming and tenacious comeback, Blair Tickner emerged as the series’ top wicket-taker, Foulkes had what might turn out to be a breakthrough week, and Jacob Duffy added further accolades to his already stellar white-ball record.
With two wickets and an economy rate of 6.82, Nathan Smith was the only player who may have ended the series in doubt, but he was included in that team along with Jamieson, who was back to full fitness, so he could make his T20I debut against the West Indies.
“[The depth] certainly has been tested,” Rob Walter, the head coach, wrote. “To be honest, I believe that at one point we had six or seven of our seamers down, which is a tremendous credit to the depth. More significantly to the people who have filled in, I believe that we frequently overlook the effort that the players who aren’t playing put in to prepare for the moment.
“Zak has been one of those men in this case. Being in and out for more than two years, Ticks has been one of those men who works hard at his profession in the hopes of getting another chance. When he does, he just kind of jumps at the chance and does it with a smile on his face.
We take pride in the fairness of our domestic competitions, their strength, and the way players can advance from them to the international circuit, even though we know it’s clearly of a higher caliber. The group welcomes them and lets them be themselves.
“There is depth. We’re definitely not taking it easy because, as we’ve seen, international cricket puts us to the test with many players coming and going and ailments creeping in here and there. Therefore, we are definitely keeping an eye on it.”
Along with Finn Allen (foot) and Glenn Phillips (groin), Henry (calf/workload management), Ferguson (hamstring), Milne (ankle), and Sears (hamstring) will not play in the Twenty20 Internationals against the West Indies.
“Kyle’s been back bowling this week and is tracking nicely for this series,” Walter stated. “If Nathan gets his T20 opportunity in this series, we expect him to perform well, as he has had an outstanding start to his international career in the Test and ODI formats.
“Matt has played every game [for New Zealand] since the tour to Zimbabwe in July – so it’s the right moment for him to have a short break and the fact he will also get some time to rehab his calf is another upside.”
New Zealand struggled with the bat in all three of their chases against England, but it was most noticeable in the last game when Foulkes and Tickner got them over the finish line. With two undefeated half-centuries, Daryl Mitchell led the way throughout the live series, but Santner made a big impact with a strike rate of 123.94, which included hitting a six onto the roof of Wellington’s Sky Stadium.
Mitchell was voted Player of the Series. “It means a hell of a lot to play for New Zealand, so for me, any time I get to be in those moments and help us win those little moments, which create big ones, it’s good fun,” Mitchell said. “It’s really pleasing to win a series and to win it in the way we have, and hopefully it creates momentum heading into the rest of the summer.”
Tom Latham had a weak series with 36 runs as well, and Will Young, who only scored six runs in three innings, will be watching closely.
After the five Twenty20 Internationals, which start in Auckland on November 5, New Zealand will play a three-match ODI series against the West Indies later this month.
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