Mitchell Santner will lead the Black Caps after taking over the captaincy from Kane Williamson, who is also part of the 15-man squad.
Fast bowlers Lockie Ferguson and Ben Sears have been named in New Zealand’s 15-man squad for the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy to be held in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates in February and March.
Seamers Ben Sears, Nathan Smith and Will O’Rourke will play their first global tournament as the Black Caps name a fast-paced line-up on Sunday.
Left-armer Mitchell Santner will lead the 15-man squad after being named white-ball captain last month, while Matt Henry will spearhead the pace attack following the international retirements of stalwarts Trent Boult and Tim Southee.
Santner, Kane Williamson and Tom Blundell are the only survivors from the New Zealand squad from the last edition of the Champions Trophy in 2017.
The batting line-up is strong, with Devon Conway, Will Young, Ravindra, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell and Williamson providing depth and experience.
Ready for Pakistan and UAE 🏏 #Champions trophy pic.twitter.com/Q4tbhqm0xi
— BLACKCAPS (@BLACKCAPS) January 11, 2025
“We are blessed with a lot of quality players at the moment and that has certainly led to some challenging selection discussions,” said coach Gary Stead.
“We went with a team that would offer us the best options to perform well under the expected conditions in Pakistan and the UAE.”
Ferguson is out of contract with New Zealand Cricket and missed the series against Sri Lanka while playing in Australia’s Big Bash League.
Sears is returning from a knee injury that kept him out for most of last year, while O’Rourke and Smith impressed in the recent Test series against England and the limited overs series against Sri Lanka that followed.
Jacob Duffy, who was outstanding in the T20 and One Day International series against Sri Lanka, was named as the traveling reserve.
The Black Caps will play warm-up matches against Pakistan, South Africa and Afghanistan in Karachi and Lahore before the start of the tournament on February 19.
New Zealand will prepare for the tournament with a warm-up tri-series against Pakistan and South Africa in Karachi and Lahore and a warm-up match against Afghanistan in Karachi.
The top eight men’s ODI teams in world cricket compete for the Champions Trophy.
New Zealand was the first winner of the tournament in 2000.
composition: Mitchell Santner (captain), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham (wicketkeeper), Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Ben Sears, Nathan Smith, Kane Williamson , Will Young.
