New Zealand cricket team have announced their 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 scheduled to be held in India and Sri Lanka. Led by captain Mitchell Santner, the Kiwi squad comprises of injured stars like Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson. New Zealand will commence their T20 World Cup campaign on February 8 and will take on Afghanistan in their tournament opener in Chennai.
New Zealand squad for T20 World Cup
Mitchell Santner (capt), Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, Adam Milne Wellington, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi
Traveling reserve: Kyle Jamieson
Ferguson, who last played for New Zealand in 2024, is yet to recover from an injury he sustained during ILT20. The pacer is among a host of other stars – Santner, Henry, Allen, and Chapman – who are all injured but are named as a part of the Kiwi squad. Allen has a finger and a hamstring injury, Chapman an ankle injury, Santner an adductor injury while Ferguson is recovering from a calf injury.
A New Zealand Cricket release stated that all their injured players are undergoing Return to Play (RTP) plans and are on track to be fit in time for the T20 World Cup. Meanwhile, reports also claim that Ferguson and Henry could take paternity leave during the marquee tournament, which means they may miss breif periods of the T20 WC.
“With Ferguson and Henry’s partners due to give birth during the tournament period it is likely they will be granted short-term paternity leave,” NZC said.
New Zealand schedule for T20 WC
| Date | Match No. | Group | Teams | Venue | Local Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun, Feb 8 2026 | 4th Match | Group D | New Zealand vs Afghanistan | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai | 11:00 AM |
| Tue, Feb 10 2026 | 11th Match | Group D | New Zealand vs United Arab Emirates | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai | 3:00 PM |
| Sat, Feb 14 2026 | 24th Match | Group D | New Zealand vs South Africa | Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad | 7:00 PM |
| Tue, Feb 17 2026 | 31st Match | Group D | New Zealand vs Canada | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai | 11:00 AM |
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