Pace bowler Ben Sears will join New Zealand’s ICC T20 World Cup squad as a travelling reserve, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) confirmed on Friday. The tournament begins on February 7 in India and Sri Lanka.
The 27-year-old is set to link up with the squad in Mumbai on Sunday, ahead of New Zealand’s warm-up match against the USA on February 5.
NZC said Sears comes in as cover after Kyle Jamieson was added to the main squad last week following Adam Milne’s withdrawal due to a hamstring injury. Milne sustained the injury while bowling in the SA20, with subsequent scans revealing its severity.
Sears has been in impressive form for Wellington in New Zealand’s domestic Super Smash competition and recently returned to action after a hamstring injury that ruled him out of the early part of the home summer.
Head coach Rob Walter praised Sears’ comeback and form. “Ben’s worked hard to get himself back on the park and it’s been great to see him back playing and performing well,” Walter said.
“He’s had a full Super Smash campaign with the Firebirds where he was the competition’s joint second-top wicket-taker from the round-robin stage with 15 wickets from his nine games.
“It will be great to have Ben with us here in India and ready to make an impact at the World Cup should someone get injured,” Walter added.
New Zealand have been drawn in Group D alongside Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa and the UAE. They will begin their campaign on February 8 in Chennai against Afghanistan.
New Zealand squad: Mitchell Santner (c), Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi