Santner to Captain New Zealand in Second Test Following Latham’s Injury

AUCKLAND: Tom Latham, the New Zealand captain for white-ball cricket, will miss the second Test match against Zimbabwe due to an ongoing shoulder injury, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) announced on Wednesday.

The cricket board stated that the left-handed batsman, who also sat out the first match of the series for the same reason, did not pass a fitness assessment before the upcoming game, which is slated to begin on Thursday.

Bevon Jacobs, a batsman from Auckland Aces who has been participating in competitive cricket in Johannesburg, will take Latham’s place.

Head Coach Rob Walter voiced his regret that Latham would not be able to participate in the second Test, despite his efforts to get healthy enough to play.

He added that Latham was ‘extremely disappointed’ that he was unable to pass the required fitness level.

Walter stated, “It’s very disappointing to lose Tom again.”

He added, “He has been putting in a lot of effort and was improving well in preparation for the second Test, but he was unable to pass his fitness exams today, sadly.”

“He is extremely disappointed that he won’t be able to play, and we sympathize with him a great deal.

“Because Tom was ruled out so close to the match, we needed to swiftly locate someone to provide cover in the field and with the bat. Fortunately, Bevon had been playing in Johannesburg and was able to travel to Bulawayo quickly.”

In the meantime, Mitchell Santner, a bowling all-rounder who led New Zealand in the first game of the series in Latham’s absence, will remain as the team’s stand-in captain.

For clarity, New Zealand holds a 1-0 lead in the two-game series against Zimbabwe after winning the first game by nine wickets.

New Zealand Test squad: Mitchell Santner (c), Tom Blundell, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matt Fisher, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Will O’Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Michael Bracewell, Rachin Ravindra, Nathan Smith and Will Young.