ICC Cricket World Cup 2023: New Zealand Name Their 15-Member Squad, Kane Williamson Returns, Kyle Jamieson Omitted

New Zealand Cricket (NZC) has announced the 15-member squad for the upcoming edition of the 50-over World Cup, starting on October 5th in Ahmedabad. The board unveiled their squad on Monday and has notably included Kane Williamson in their ranks even as he continues to recover from his knee injury.

Williamson, man of the tournament in the 2019 World Cup, suffered a knee injury sustained a knee injury in the very first match of IPL 2023. The classy right-handed batter underwent a surgery and was doubtful of participating in the tournament. However, head coach Gary Stead confirmed last week of his participation. The 33-year-old, along with Tim Southee, will feature in his 4th World Cup, having already played in 2011, 2015, and 2019.

With Finn Allen excluded, Devon Conway and Will Young are set to open the innings in the showpiece event. James Neesham, who was at the crease during the famous super over in the 2019 World Cup, has been retained, while Southee, Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson and Matt Henry make up the pace-bowling unit. Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi are the frontline spinners, while Rachin Ravindra has earned his maiden World Cup call-up.

"We know the value Will brings" - Gary Stead

Stead addressed Young's inclusion over Allen, stating that the former is better suited to their gameplan they have in mind and believes he is in for a big score. As quoted by New Zealand cricket's official website, he said:

"We had to make a decision, ultimately, for the opening batting position and it came down Finn and Will Young. And we just felt that when we looked through what the potential gameplan was looking like in India, looked at the grounds, and also looked at the form of the two players as well that Youngy was the right guy to go with."

"We know the value Will brings and have been really pleased with the way he's played in the last couple of games without going on to get a big one but it certainly looks encouraging."

New Zealand for 2023 World Cup squad:

Kane Williamson (capt), Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Will Young.