Blair Tickner replaces Adam Milne in New Zealand's white-ball squads

New Zealand pacer Adam Milne will not play any part in the Kiwis' white-ball tours of Pakistan and India after withdrawing from the upcoming national assignments due to concerns about his preparation. Blair Tickner has replaced the Kiwi speedster in the ODI squad that will be touring the Asian subcontinent later this month.

Adam Mine, 30, complained of a tight hamstring after New Zealand's home series against India in November last year. The pacer has been plagued with injuries in recent times and his latest setback delayed his return to domestic cricket as he missed two Ford Trophy matches for the Wellington Firebirds.

Given his woeful injury record, the team management came to a mutual agreement to omit the player from the upcoming tour, as he would have been slated to participate in six ODIs across Pakistan and India in the space of 16 days. Blair Tickner, who is already in Pakistan with the Test team, was drafted into the ODI squad as Milne's replacement. 

“Adam was very up front with us about his concerns around the lack of one-day bowling loading for the upcoming tours. After chatting to him, we agreed his preparation leading into the tour wouldn’t be sufficient for him to cope with the demands of back-to-back, three-game ODI series. We appreciate his honesty and his genuine desire not to let the team down,” BLACKCAPS selector Gavin Larsen said in an official statement.

The fact Tickner is already in Pakistan experiencing the conditions is an added bonus: Larsen

Gavin Larsen feels that Tickner is a like-for-like replacement for Milne since he offers a similar skillset to that of Milne. He would be familiar with the conditions in the subcontinent since he is already with the Test team participating in the ongoing two-match Test series against Pakistan. New Zealand's ODI contingent will depart for Pakistan on January 4 for the three-match series that commences on January 9.

"Blair’s skills at bowling through the middle and his ability to hit the pitch hard make him a similar prospect to what Adam offered us. The fact he’s already in Pakistan experiencing the conditions is an added bonus,” Larsen added.