It was only a couple of days back that Kiwi pacer Matt Henry became the first from his nation in 36 years, to be the no. 1 Test bowler, and now on Wednesday, he has been ruled out of the 3rd Test against England at Trent Bridge. He is not the only casualty; even the hero from last match, Glenn Phillips won’t be a part of this fixture due to an injury.
Matt Henry, Glenn Phillips out
The pacer who picked up 11 wickets in the last Oval Test, sustained a calf injury, while Phillips was down with a side strain. A NZC statement provided clarity on the entire issue. “Initial assessment suggests a recovery time of two to four weeks,” the statement added.
In place of Phillips, Mitchell Santner was added to the playing XI, while NZ added two more pacers in Blair Tickner and Ben Sears. The series is currently locked at 1-1, and it will be important for the visitors to win here, to be in contention for the WTC final. A few of their players are showing tremendous form.
Ben Stokes back for England
On the other hand, after missing out on the 2nd Test, Ben Stokes is back as skipper for England, and so is pacer Gus Atkinson. The duo had been left out, after a nightclub incident controversy had erupted, post the 1st match, that the hosts had won. An internal enquiry by the ECB, acquitted the duo from any wrongdoing.
“The Cricket Regulator has concluded its investigation into the events of 7–8 June involving Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson. The Cricket Regulator’s role is to determine whether any participant or player has breached any applicable ECB Cricket Regulations. The investigation followed multiple lines of enquiry to gather and assess evidence in relation to the events in question.
“Having carefully reviewed all currently available information, the Cricket Regulator has determined that there is insufficient evidence to establish that any regulatory breach occurred. Accordingly, no further action will be taken against either player. The Cricket Regulator would like to thank all those involved for their cooperation throughout the investigation,” the Cricket Regulator said in a statement.
New Zealand (Playing XI): Tom Latham(c), Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell(w), Mitchell Santner, Nathan Smith, Blair Tickner, Ben Sears, William ORourke.
England (Playing XI): Ben Duckett, Emilio Gay, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith(w), Ben Stokes(c), Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir.
