New Zealand call up Rachin Ravindra, Jacob Duffy for England Tests and WTC final

New Zealand Cricket (NZC) has named all-rounder Rachin Ravindra and fast bowler Jacob Duffy in the 20-man squad for the Test series against England and the World Test Championship final against India. Devon Conway, who has impressed in the ODIs and T20Is against Australia and Bangladesh, received a Test call-up as well.

Conway has scored a ton and has a couple of scores in the 90s as well. The southpaw was called up as Kane Williamson’s cover back in December 2020 during the Kiwis’ home Tests, but he couldn’t make the cut. As far as Ravindra and Duffy are concerned, Black Caps’ head coach Gary Stead was happy to see them in the scheme of things.

Ravindra is a great asset: New Zealand coach

“Rachin’s been earmarked as a star of the future since his Under-19 days and we’ve been really encouraged by the advancement in his game this season, with both bat and ball. He’s obviously an opening option, but also has the ability to bat in the middle order which combined with his left-arm finger spin make him a great asset to our squad,” Stead was quoted as saying.

“Jacob’s been a consistent performer on the domestic circuit and his ability to swing the ball made him a particularly compelling option with a Dukes ball in English conditions,” he added. Duffy has already made his T20I debut against Pakistan with a Man of the Match performance in his very first appearance.

New Zealand, however, have left out speedster Lockie Ferguson from both the fixtures to maintain his fitness for the T20 World Cup in India later this year. The pacer is set to play for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL), starting April 9.

The Kiwis’ tour of England starts on May 25 with a practice match followed by two Tests at the Lord’s and Edgbaston. The WTC final is scheduled to be played at the Rose Bowl in Southampton from June 18.

Here’s New Zealand’s squad:

Kane Williamson (c), Tom Blundell, Trent Boult, Doug Bracewell, Devon Conway, Colin de Grandhomme, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling (wk), Will Young