Rain and the state of the outfield at Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground rendered the third day of the one-off Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand a non-starter. Play was abandoned as early as 9.15 am. With no play possible on either of the first two days, and the toss yet to happen, the chances

Several slushy pockets in the Greater Noida Sports Complex ground along with drainage that has been overwhelmed by constant rainfall have prevented the one-off Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand from taking off. For the second straight day, there was no play possible, not even a toss, and there is growing fear that the entire

The second day of the only Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand suffered the same miserable fate as the first due to rain in Greater Noida, albeit not during hours of play, and the quality of the outfield. The toss was scheduled half an hour earlier at 9am, to make up for day one being

New Zealand will be boosted by the return of fast bowler Rosemary Mair for the women’s T20 World Cup 2024, after she suffered a back injury during their home series against England in March. Meanwhile, their captain Sophie Devine and Suzie Bates are set to play their ninth T20 World Cup when the competition begins

The first day of Test match between New Zealand and Afghanistan at the Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground was abandoned without a ball being bowled due to wet outfield. The weather played fair all day, with the sun shining down on the ground. However, the drainage facilities could not dry out the playing area in

Big picture: Back at it after a break When New Zealand last played Afghanistan, during the T20 World Cup in June, they suffered a defeat so catastrophic it precipitated a rare group-stage exit from an ICC tournament. That match was in Providence, Guyana, on the other side of the planet from where the teams are

New Zealand are about to embark on a period where they will play six Tests in two months. That’s rare, on two counts. First, that’s almost a whole year’s work for them – like in 2020 and 2021, when they went on to become the inaugural World Test Champions. And second, all of those matches

Imagine being a frontline spinner from a country that is known to produce world-class fast bowlers. Imagine then touring a tough place like India and grabbing a historic all-ten in only your 11th Test. Now imagine still not becoming a frontline spinner for your team and getting to feature in only five of the next

Rangana Herath and Vikram Rathour have linked up with the New Zealand Test squad, who are set to play six Tests in Asia over the next two months. Herath will be the spin-bowling coach for New Zealand’s next three Tests – one against Afghanistan and two in Sri Lanka – while Rathour will only be

Sarah Tsukigawa, the former New Zealand allrounder, has been appointed their new national selector for women’s cricket. She played 42 ODIs and 19 T20Is over a five-year international career which began in 2006 and ended in 2011. Tsukigawa will be working with the New Zealand’s head coach Ben Sawyer. Her role will include selecting players

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots, who had been depleted by injuries in the opening week of CPL 2024, have now been bolstered by the return of Wanindu Hasaranga* and signing of New Zealand’s big-hitting allrounder Josh Clarkson. Hasaranga had been ruled out of the tournament only last month because of a hamstring injury, and was

The club vs country issue is beginning to hurt New Zealand, with high-profile names opting out of central contracts. As they get ready for a burst of nine Test matches in the next few months, Test captain Tim Southee acknowledged the issue, but put it down to “the changing landscape of international cricket”. He recently

Clarkson, the 27-year-old middle-order batter and medium-pace bowler, has played three ODIs and T20Is while 26-year-old Smith has yet to make his international debut. Smith was the leading wicket-taker in last season’s Plunket Shield with 33 at 17.18 for champions Wellington. He also represented Worcestershire this season where he claimed 27 wickets at 21.14 in

Sophie Devine will step down as New Zealand’s T20I captain at the end of the upcoming T20 World Cup in the UAE but will remain in charge of the ODI side. Devine, who has led New Zealand in 56 T20Is, will continue to play the format but felt it was the right time to reduce

Lou Vincent, the former New Zealand international, received a special cap earlier this month to commemorate his 100th ODI, nearly 17 years since the milestone in 2007. Sir Richard Hadlee presented Vincent the cap in Auckland at a small ceremony attended by Vincent’s family and some former team-mates. “It was a lovely way to be

Jacob Oram has been appointed the bowling coach for New Zealand Men, filling the role vacated by Shane Jurgensen. He had previously worked with the side as bowling coach during last year’s Test tour of Bangladesh, the T20I series against Australia and the T20 World Cup earlier this year. “I’m really excited to have the

The last rest day to occur in Sri Lanka, meanwhile, was back in December 2001, in a Test against Zimbabwe. This was down to the occurrence of a full moon, a day being a public holiday in the largely Buddhist nation. Before gradually fading into oblivion, for all practical purposes, Sundays were rest days in

As more and more New Zealand international players opt out of central contracts for T20 deals overseas, their Test captain Tim Southee is hoping that boards and franchise leagues “work together in some way” to make the club-versus-country choice easier for players. New Zealand have been among the hardest hit as high-profile names such as

Allen’s T20 strike rate of 168.60 is the second highest for any batter with at least 3000 runs in the format, behind only Andre Russell. At the international level, Allen has scored two T20I centuries, while he also made a significant impact against Australia at the 2022 T20 World Cup, when he flayed 42 off

Sophie Devine will remain with Perth Scorchers in the WBBL for at least another two seasons after completing a pre-draft signing. Devine was retained by Scorchers in last season’s draft, ahead of Marizanne Kapp, when Melbourne Renegades had attempted to secure the New Zealand captain. She had another productive campaign with 489 runs at 37.61,

Devon Conway and Finn Allen have become the latest New Zealand players to turn down central contracts, but Conway has signed a casual agreement similar to Kane Williamson and has made himself available for all internationals except for the Sri Lanka white-ball matches in January when he will take up an SA20 deal. Allen, the

Former New Zealand batter George Worker has announced his retirement from professional cricket at the age of 34 to take up a “fantastic opportunity” with an investment services firm. “After a fulfilling 17-year journey in professional cricket, I am announcing my retirement from the sport. This decision marks the end of an incredible chapter of

A few of New Zealand’s provinces have announced their first round of contracted players. Here is a look at all the updates ahead of the upcoming season. Central Hinds’ captain Natalie Dodd has opted out of the annual domestic contracting process for the forthcoming season as she is expecting her first child later this year.

Tim Southee, New Zealand’s Test captain, may be left out of some of team’s upcoming matches on the subcontinent if conditions dictate a different balance to their side. Southee will lead a 15-player squad, which includes five-spin bowling options, for the one-off Test against Afghanistan and two matches against Sri Lanka, which ESPNcricinfo understands will

Melbourne Renegades have signed New Zealand wicketkeeper-batter Tim Seifert on two-year deal as a pre-draft BBL signing. Seifert, 29, will have full availability across those two seasons as Renegades look to improve on last season’s seventh place finish. His BBL deal means he will miss at least part of the Super Smash, New Zealand’s domestic

Afghanistan are set to face New Zealand in a one-off Test in September. The match will be played in Greater Noida in India. This will be the first time the two teams face each other in the longest format. It will also be their first Test at the Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground, which has

Tom Latham, who could be New Zealand’s next ODI captain, has said that the team will have to become increasingly flexible with how they adapt to players opting out of central contracts to take up franchise deals. Kane Williamson, Lockie Ferguson and Adam Milne made themselves unavailable for the latest batch of contracts although former

Fast bowler Adam Milne has joined Kane Williamson and Lockie Ferguson in declining a contract and Blair Tickner has dropped out of the 20 players. Ravindra was a breakout star of the 2023 ODI World Cup where he made 578 runs and then scored his maiden Test century against South Africa in Mount Maunganui which

Two days after New Zealand’s golden era ended in Tarouba, some members of their next generation were hard at work in Chennai. The city in south India has become something of a satellite office for New Zealand cricket in India, thanks to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) connection. Spin-bowling allrounder Dean Foxcroft, top-order batter Tim

Kane Williamson has confirmed that the SA20 will be his destination in January, after he declined a New Zealand central contract for the 2024-25 season, but added it was no indication that his international career was nearing an end. Williamson stressed that it was NZC’s rules around player availability to be eligible for a contract