Mitchell McClenaghan, the New Zealand left-arm quick, has been ruled out of the remainder of the one-day series against England after suffering a side strain in Hamilton. Martin Guptill, who picked up a hamstring injury but returned to hit the winning runs, will miss Wednesday’s match in Napier but is an outside chance to recover for the last game in Auckland.
McClenaghan claimed 4 for 56 in the opening match, removing Alastair Cook early then returning to help dismantle England’s middle and lower order, but he could not complete his 10 overs when he pulled up with two balls remaining. He had looked in pain earlier in his final over, but only after removing Steven Finn did he concede to his injury. He will have a scan on Monday to determine the full extent of the problem.
Given his consistent limited-overs form since making his debut in South Africa there was a chance that McClenaghan would have been in contention for the Test squad that is due to be named later this week, although New Zealand are reasonably settled on their five-day seamers and McClenaghan’s first-class record is mediocre.
A New Zealand Cricket statement said that replacement players will be named on Monday. There is a chance that Luke Ronchi, the former Australia wicketkeeper who has now qualified for New Zealand, may be considered for a batting position although Hamish Rutherford, who was part of Twenty20 squad, is a likelier option.
To replace McClenaghan the selectors could opt for Doug Bracewell, who took a career-best 7 for 35 in the current round of Plunket Shield matches, or Neil Wagner who was also on tour in South Africa. Trent Boult, another left-arm seamer, is already part of the squad and Brendon McCullum, New Zealand’s captain, indicated that he was likely to be the first option for Napier.
Tim Southee has returned from a thumb injury with nine wickets in the match for Northern Districts against Wellington but the selectors will be wary of rushing him back ahead of the Test series.
“Mitch has been a revelation for us this year, he has done an amazing job and really allowed us to attack in areas that we probably hadn’t had that luxury of in recent times,” McCullum said. “It’s incredibly disappointing for him but at the same time it gives him an opportunity to rest himself up and make sure he’s fresh for our next assignment.”
