Injury Rules Luke Ronchi Out For Four Weeks, Uncapped Tom Blundell Named Replacement
Jan 6, 2017 at 5:57 PM
An injury has ruled out New Zealand’s wicket-keeper batsman Luke Ronchi from the final T20I match against Bangladesh after the host sealed the T20 series on Friday, by beating the visitors by 47 runs in the second T20 at Mount Maunganui. Uncapped wicket-keeper batsman Tom Blundell of Wellington will replace him in the squad.
Ronchi, who was out on the very first ball of the match, suffered a tear in his right adductor during the eighth over of the Bangladesh innings and was helped out of the ground later on. Tom Bruce, who made his T20I debut in the ongoing series, took over the gloves from him. Details of his injury would be out after the scans but he is expected to sit on sidelines for around four to six weeks.
Tom is currently playing the Super Smash tournament and will be involved in his side’s summit clash on Saturday, after which he will join the Kiwi squad for the third and final match on Sunday. Coach Mike Hesson confirmed the news after the match.
“Tom, along with George Worker, will play in the grand final before linking up with us after the game tomorrow night. They’ll both be eligible for Sunday’s third and final T20. Tom Bruce filled in admirably with the gloves today and could be an option for us behind the stumps going forward”, he concluded.