New Delhi, July 29 (IANS) New Zealand Test captain Tom Latham has been ruled out of the first Test against Zimbabwe with a shoulder injury. In his absence, New Zealand limited-overs captain Mitchell Santner will lead the side and will become the 32nd captain of the country’s Test team.

Latham suffered an injury while fielding during a T20 match for Birmingham earlier this month and has not recovered sufficiently to be included in the eleven for the series opener in Bulawayo on Wednesday. He will remain with the squad with the hope that he will be fit for the second Test starting August 7.

Santner, who has 30 Test caps to his name, assumes the role fresh off a T20I Tri-Series victory in Harare, where New Zealand remained undefeated throughout the five-match series.

New Zealand head coach Rob Walter said Latham’s skillset and leadership would be greatly missed.

“It’s hugely disappointing for Tom to be missing the first Test, as captain but also as an integral part of the team,” said Walter. “It’s never great when you lose your captain, who’s a world-class opening batter and a great team man, but that said, we’re going to work really hard to have him available for the second Test.

“We’ll continue to assess and see whether a replacement player is necessary, but at this stage we are hopeful that he’ll recover in time.”

Walter said the team was in good hands with Santner.

“Mitch did a wonderful job with the T20 squad in this recent series. He was excellent from a strategy point of view, and he has a strong understanding of the game.

“Whilst the format is different, he certainly has the respect of the players and will be supported by some highly experienced Test cricketers, so I trust that he’s going to do a great job.”

The two-match series, which is not part of the World Test Championship (WTC), will mark New Zealand’s first Test tour of Zimbabwe since 2016. The 2021 WTC champions will start their WTC cycle with the three-Test home series against the West Indies in December.

–IANS

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