New Zealand

Bella James has been ruled out of New Zealand’s ODI series at home against Sri Lanka with a grade-two quadricep strain on her right leg. She is expected to require between three and six weeks of rehabilitation and has been replaced by Lauren Down. A decision on James’ availability for the T20I series that follows

Shanto started the post-match press conference on Monday by saying that they need to make “changes”. “I have said it a lot of times in the past, but we [have] made the same mistakes over and over again,” he said. “We have to focus on how we want to improve our batting. I hope after

New Zealand have picked a young uncapped trio of Emma McLeod, batter Izzy Sharp, and left-arm seamer Bree Illing for the upcoming home series against Sri Lanka. The squad of 16 also sees the return of Georgia Plimmer after recovering from a bone stress reaction in her hip which had sidelined her since November. Hayley

New Zealand and India are through to the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy from Group A, following New Zealand’s five-wicket win over Bangladesh in Rawalpindi on Monday. The two will face each other on March 2 in Dubai for top spot in Group A, but regardless of the result in that game, India will play

Kyle Jamieson last played international cricket a year ago. Since then, there were ten months out with a stress fracture of the back – for the second time in his career. Having been named in New Zealand’s squad for the Champions Trophy as an injury replacement for Lockie Ferguson, Jamieson feels he is in the

Bangladesh’s top order has to stand up and be counted for the side to have any chance against New Zealand, according to head coach Phil Simmons. Bangladesh were soundly beaten by India in their first game, and this is a do-or-die game for them. Simmons said Bangladesh had given the game away with their poor

Big picture: New Zealand primed for semi-finals New Zealand are in their element. They came into the Champions Trophy after an unbeaten run to the tri-series title against South Africa and Pakistan, whom they beat convincingly once again in the tournament opener. Will Young and Tom Latham struck centuries to set up a 300-plus score

New Zealand 320 for 5 (Latham 118*, Young 107, Phillips 61, Naseem 2-63) beat Pakistan260 (Khushdil 69, Babar 64, O’Rourke 3-47, Santner 3-66) by 60 runs Pakistan had to wait for nearly three decades for a global tournament to return to their country, but New Zealand spoiled their party on the opening day of the

New Zealand opener Will Young drove Shaheen Afridi through the covers to beat the infield, with Zaman setting off in pursuit. He cut it off before palming it over to Babar Azam to throw it back to the keeper, but immediately appeared to feel discomfort in his lower back. He signalled that he needed to

Big picture: Pakistan vs New Zealand (again) We live in a time when the ODI is starved for attention, with the older sibling commanding instant respect for its age and wisdom and the younger one bawling at full lung capacity if you dare to look away while it cartwheels around the room. For all that,

Like a celebrity adamant to prevent unflattering photographs being taken, he’s already got his helmet on, the gash on his forehead and the stitches holding it together hidden from view. New Zealand have wrapped more than just bandages around him, protecting him from a rushed return after the freak injury he suffered ten days ago,

Jamieson, 30, has only just recovered from a back injury of his own, having spent 10 months out of the game. His hiatus from ODI cricket stretches back even longer – till September 2023. He has recent form going his way though. Jamieson proved his fitness during the Super Smash T20 competition, along with the

New Zealand batter Kane Williamson has become the first direct overseas signing in the men’s Hundred and will captain London Spirit during this year’s competition, as previously reported on ESPNcricinfo. He will also play for Middlesex during a four-month stay in the UK. Williamson, 34, has not played in the Hundred, despite being picked up

Ben Sears has been ruled out of the Champions Trophy with a hamstring injury. Sears, who was also part of New Zealand’s squad for the tri-series in Pakistan, felt pain in his left hamstring at the team’s training session in Karachi on Wednesday. A subsequent scan revealed a minor tear that would require at least

Big picture – Pakistan vs New Zealand is the ideal final match-up It’s rare for a tournament final to be a dry run, but that’s almost what this Pakistan vs New Zealand game will be. There’s a trophy on the line in Karachi, five days before another Pakistan vs New Zealand game in Karachi –

Mitchell Santner won the toss, and New Zealand opted to bowl, in the second game of the tri-series where victory would guarantee them a spot in the final. Santner believed swing up front may play a part, given the early start under somewhat overcast conditions. They made one change, with Rachin Ravindra out after suffering

Big picture: Ravindra out after opening-night injury New Zealand’s start to what they hope will be a full month in and around Pakistan couldn’t have gone much better. The squad they picked for the tri-series as well as the upcoming Champions Trophy appears to be especially well-suited to these conditions at this early stage. They

Fielding at deep square leg in the 37th over, Ravindra steadied himself to take a catch as Khushdil Shah slog-swept Michael Bracewell towards the on side. But Ravindra seemed to lose the ball in the floodlights, and took no evasive action as it struck him square on the forehead. He was seen staring at the

Innings New Zealand 330 for 6 (Phillips 106*, Mitchell 81, Williamson 58, Afridi 3-88) vs Pakistan A blistering onslaught from Glenn Phillips in the final six overs saw New Zealand surge to 330 for 6 in the first ODI of the tri-series, against Pakistan. The innings appeared a struggle until the 44th over, with Pakistan

New Zealand fast bowler Lockie Ferguson is under an injury cloud, ahead of the the tri-series in Pakistan and the Champions Trophy, after hurting his hamstring while playing in the UAE’s ILT20. In the first qualifier on Wednesday, captaining Desert Vipers against Dubai Capitals, Ferguson left the field without completing his allotment of four overs.

Big picture: Opportunity for precious game time in Pakistan A triangular ODI series is something of a curiosity that belongs in a museum more than it does in 2025. Pakistan last hosted one in 2004, and there have been none in the ODI format anywhere since 2008. When this particular series was announced not long

Surrey have filled the main gap in their T20 squad with the signing of New Zealand’s Mitchell Santner for the majority of the Vitality Blast season. Santner is available for eight group-stage games and the knockouts in September, if Surrey qualify. Dan Lawrence, Cameron Steel and Will Jacks were Surrey’s only spin options in the

Two teams who have traversed contrasting paths in the 2024-25 Super Smash will meet on Sunday, for a title that has been eluding them for years. Central Districts, unarguably the form team of the tournament, with six wins in their eight completed games, will be chasing their first T20 trophy since 2018-19. Though Canterbury have

Duffy, 30, has played ten ODIs, and taken 18 wickets at an average of 25.94 and economy of 6.25. He recently took four wickets in two ODIs, and eight in three T20Is against Sri Lanka in a home series that ended earlier in January. The New Zealand squad departs for Pakistan on February 3 to

New Zealand captain and allrounder Sophie Devine is set to miss the WPL 2025, where she is part of Royal Challengers Bengaluru, to “prioritise her well-being” after receiving professional advice. She will also miss the remainder of the ongoing domestic season and return home. An NZC release also said the decision on Devine’s playing future

Blair Tickner will return to Derbyshire for the 2025 season on an all-format deal. The New Zealand fast bowler played seven matches for the county last summer across the Vitality County Championship and Vitality Blast, before returning home early after his wife Sarah was diagnosed with leukemia. Now with Sarah on the road to recovery,

Between Lockie Ferguson, Ben Sears, and Will O’ Rourke, New Zealand’s mens’s side have their high-pace, high-bounce options covered. These are the kinds of bowlers that tend to find ways to trouble batters on any surface you roll out for them. But what if, in Pakistan and Dubai, through the course of the Champions Trophy,

Sears, who was a traveling reserve for the T20 World Cup last year, has recently played his first game since April having returned in the Super Smash following injury and is in line for his ODI debut having played one Test and 17 T20Is. O’Rourke has impressed across formats early in his international career, but

Martin Guptill has officially confirmed his retirement from international cricket, having last played for New Zealand in October 2022. Guptill, 38, will continue to feature in T20 leagues around the world. Guptill is currently in action for Auckland in the Super Smash, New Zealand’s domestic T20 competition, and has also signed up for the PSL

The PCB has relocated its ODI tri-series with New Zealand and South Africa to Lahore and Karachi, as it readies the two venues to host the Champions Trophy from February 19. The four-match tri-series, due to start on February 8, was originally scheduled to be played in Multan. But the PCB has decided to move