Josh Clarkson has been pulled out from the New Zealand squad for the third match of the KFC T20 Series against Pakistan due to a shoulder issue. Will Young will join the squad in preparation for the match after Clarkson was injured while playing for the Central Stags in the Dream11 Super Smash tournament.
Clarkson was slated to replace Kane Williamson in the third game as the New Zealand captain continues to manage his Workload after a knee injury. However, Clarkson injured his shoulder while playing for Central Districts in the Super Smash. Young will join the squad following the second T20I on Sunday.
“Josh Clarkson will no longer join the BLACKCAPS squad ahead of the third match of the KFC T20 Series against Pakistan after being ruled out with a shoulder injury. The injury suffered by Clarkson playing for the Central Stags in the Dream11 Super Smash means Will Young will now join the squad in preparation for the match at Dunedin’s University of Otago Oval.
Clarkson was set to join the squad for game three with captain Kane Williamson not travelling to Dunedin before joining the team again ahead of the final two matches of the series in Christchurch. Young will join the squad after tomorrow’s match at Hamilton’s Seddon Park”.
Will Young has played 97 T20 games, amassing 2290 runs at an average of 26.62, with 14 fifties and two centuries. The 31-year-old joins the squad after scoring 50 and 100 runs for Central Districts in the Super Smash in Napier. The New Zealand opener hammered a 33-ball 50 against Wellington before scoring an undefeated 63-ball 101 against Otago in the following match.
Mitchell Santner, meant to lead New Zealand in the third T20I in Kane Williamson’s absence, missed the first game in Auckland due to Covid-19. It would be interesting to see who will lead the team if Santner does not recover in time for the third game. The Left-handed all-rounder was isolated at the team’s Auckland hotel after testing positive on Friday.
New Zealand made a great start to their five-match T20I series against Pakistan. Kane Williamson and Daryl Mitchell scored aggressive fifty, which enabled the hosts to score 226 for 8. In response, Babar Azam hit a fifty, but Tim Southee’s brilliant spell of 4 for 25 helped New Zealand bowl out Pakistan for 180, winning the first game by 46 runs.
