New Zealand Cricket (NZC) has announced T20I and Test squads to take on West Indies in November-December.   

Kane Williamson and Trent Boult have been rested for the three T20Is which will take place on November 27, 29 and 30. Auckland will host the series opener while the back-to-back last two T20Is will be played in Mount Maunganui.

South African-born batsman Devon Conway has made an entrance into the squad after impressing in New Zealand’s domestic circuit. Kyle Jamieson is another new face in T20I squad. 

New Zealand head coach Gary Stead is looking forward to welcome the newcomer Conway, who is also a part of New Zealand A squad to face West Indies in warm-ups.

“We’re looking forward to welcoming Devon into our environment for the first time and I’m sure he’ll soak up the experience,” Stead said.

Tim Southee will play only the first two T20Is. He will lead the Blackcaps in those two matches.

Meanwhile, uncapped Will Young has been named in the Test squad which also includes Ajaz Patel, who has played 8 Tests so far.

New Zealand will opt for a 2-0 against West Indies to stay in contention for World Test Championship final after a new change to rule was made to confirm finalists for Lord’s 2021.

“We’ve had to make a decision on Kane and Trent to prioritise the Test matches, given how important they are to our red-ball team and the fact they both played such big roles in the recent IPL while also managing injuries,” the Kiwi coach said.

“There’s no secret we’re right in the hunt for the World Test Championship Final following our two-nil win over India and having Trent and Kane fully fit and focussed for the upcoming series will be crucial.”

Hamilton will host the first Test from December 3 to 7. The second and final Test will be played in Wellington from December 11 to 15.

This is the first international series for New Zealand men’s team since COVID-19 pandemic. They last played in a closed-door ODI against Australia in Sydney last March. Jason Holder’s West Indies toured England for three Tests in July.

T20I squad: Tim Southee* (c), Hamish Bennett, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Kyle Jamieson*, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Seifert (wk), Ross Taylor*

* Southee, Jamieson and Taylor will play only the first T20Is. Doug Bracewell, Scott Kuggeleijn and Mark Chapman will replace them in the 3rd T20I  

Test squad: Kane Williamson (captain), Tom Blundell, Trent Boult, Colin de Grandhomme, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling (wk), Will Young