The back complaint that has sidelined Corey Anderson since the tour of England has also ruled him out of the BLACKCAPS’ Test Series in Australia.
The 24-year-old Anderson has been unable to recover quickly enough to withstand the demands of the approaching Test series, and has been replaced in the squad by SKYCITY Northern Knights allrounder, Mitchell Santner.
BLACKCAPS selector Gavin Larsen said, in terms of bowling, Anderson was unfortunately behind in his recovery schedule and simply could not have been risked for the Australian tour.
“Corey hasn’t been able to recover as quickly as we hoped and we’ve chosen not to try to rush him back,” said Larsen.
“We’ve always said there were a number of checkpoints for him to meet before our departure date, and we’re now in a position to confirm he’s not ready.
“With that in mind, it’s better for him to continue his rehabilitation at Lincoln.”
Santner (23) was first selected by the BLACKCAPS on this year's tour of England and played in the five One-Day Internationals, before missing the tour of Zimbabwe and South Africa after breaking his thumb in a training accident.
Santner gained valuable international experience in England / Photosport
Larsen said Santner’s strong recent form for NZA in their warmup fixture (in which he scored a century) and series against Sri Lanka A sealed his selection.
“Mitch clearly isn’t a direct, like-for-like replacement for Corey — but in terms of the bigger picture, he’s an allrounder who can bat at No. 6 or 7 and he’s also a front-line bowler,” said Larsen.
“It’s a good opportunity for him. We believe his left-arm spin will add some variety to our options and his batting is well-suited to the conditions expected across the Tasman.”
The BLACKCAPS depart for Australia on October 20.
