New Zealand captain Kane Williamson will miss the third T20I against India in Napier on November 22 (Tuesday). The veteran Kiwi leader will miss the game for a pre-arranged medical appointment. In his absence, seasoned pacer Tim Southee, who bagged a hat-trick in the second T20I on November 20 (Sunday), will don the captaincy hat for the Black Caps. Hong Kong-born all-rounder Mark Chapman has been named as Williamson's replacement for the Napier T20I.
"Kane’s been trying to get this booked in for a while now, but unfortunately it hasn’t been able to fit into our schedule," New Zealand head coach Gary Stead said.
"The health and well-being of our players and staff is paramount, and we look forward to seeing him in Auckland," he added.
Commenting on Mark Chapman's inclusion, Stead said, "He’s a quality player who offers good versatility in the order."
Williamson will return to New Zealand's squad for the ODI series which begins on November 25 (Friday).
India are touring New Zealand for a three-match T20I and ODI series. Both teams are coming into the match following their exit from the semifinal stage of the T20 World Cup in Australia. While India lost to eventual champions England, New Zealand were defeated by Pakistan.
The first T20I resulted in a washout without even a single ball being bowled while the Men in Blue schooled the Kiwis by 65 runs in the second match after Suryakumar Yadav smashed his second century of 2022.
New Zealand's squad for 3rd T20I: Tim Southee (C), Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway (wk), Lockie Ferguson, Daryl Mitchell, Adam Milne, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner, Mark Chapman.
India's squad for 3rd T20I: Hardik Pandya (c), Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik.
