Bracewell to replace Phillips for first Test against Zimbabwe

Harare, July 25 (IANS) New Zealand all-rounder Michael Bracewell has been named as a replacement for injured Glenn Phillips for the first Test against Zimbabwe.

Phillips suffered the injury during the Major League Cricket (MLC) final and was assessed on arrival in Zimbabwe and required a number of weeks to rehabilitate.

Bracewell, who was not considered in the original squad due to his commitments with The Hundred overlapping with the two-Test series in Bulawayo, set to make a return in the BlackCaps red-ball lineup for the first time since 2023.

The 34-year old, who last featured in a Test match during Sri Lanka’s tour of New Zealand in 2023, will depart Zimbabwe after the conclusion of the first Test and join the Southern Brave ahead of their first game.

Having made his debut in the longest format back in 2022, Bracewell has 24 wickets and 259 runs to his name from eight matches. New Zealand head coach Rob Walter said Bracewell is a strong replacement for Phillips.

“Glenn’s injury provided a gap in the Test squad and Michael is the closest like-for-like replacement. Michael’s experience and skillset will be a great asset and allows us to keep the same balance of the team," said Walter.

After the conclusion of the T20I tri-nation series that also includes South Africa, Zimbabwe and New Zealand in Harare, the latter two will contest in a two-Test series in Bulawayo starting July 30.

"Given he's here with the T20 squad and his availability aligned for the first Test, we’re using the opportunity to include him in the squad. We’ll get through the first Test and then we’ll make a decision whether we’ll replace him for the second Test," Walter added.

Zimbabwe v New Zealand Test Schedule

1st Test - July 30 - August 3 - Bulawayo

2nd Test - August 7 - August 11 - Bulawayo

--IANS

bc/ab