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New Zealand's decorative captain Kane Williamson is all set to make a comeback in the national squad for next month's Test series against England. The Black Caps announced a 20-member squad for the three-match bilateral series. Williamson, who has not featured in the national squad since November, last year due to a persistent elbow injury, also missed the drawn home series against Bangladesh and South Africa recently.
In a statement released by the New Zealand cricket board, Williamson has made a full recovery from the elbow injury and will bolster the batting of his side as well as lead the side. Experienced seamers Tim Southee, Trent Boult and Neil Wagner, have all been included in the squad.
"The red-ball tour of England first up is clearly high on our priority list, and we're looking forward to hitting the ground running over there in a couple of weeks' time," New Zealand head coach Gary Stead said.
"England has a rich history and touring the country was, is and will always be a special moment with the people, the grounds and the history all making for a wonderful experience. It's going to be a tough condition to play the game, but that will test the quality of our players," Gary added.
Notably, the BlackCaps will be without legendary Ross Taylor and BJ Watling, who recently retired but have remained the other 13 players who beat India at the Ageas Bowl in the final of last year's World Test Championship.
New Zealand Test squad: Kane Williamson (c), Trent Boult, Tom Blundell, Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Colin de Grandhomme, Jacob Duffy, Cameron Fletcher, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Rachin Ravindra, Hamish Rutherford, Tim Southee, Blair Tickner, Neil Wagner, Will Young
New Zealand Test schedule:
First Test: Lord's - June 2-6
Second Test: Trent Bridge - June 10-14
Third Test: Headingley - June 23-27