New Zealand's Trent Boult Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Veteran Black Caps bowler Trent Boult is back in the national side after being selected for the T20 internationals against Australia.
The 34-year-old is set to play his first T20I since November 2022.
With Daryl Mitchell and Kane Williamson both unavailable, Josh Clarkson and Rachin Ravindra have been selected in the squad for next week's three games.
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A foot injury to Daryl Mitchell and Kane Williamson's paternity leave has elevated Clarkson - a powerful all-rounder who is uncapped in T20Is, and rising star Ravindra - fresh from his successful return to the Test arena against South Africa.
Boult has been selected for games two and three at Eden Park on Friday night (23 Feb) and Sunday afternoon (25 Feb), as Test captain Tim Southee manages his workload between the South Africa and Australia Test series.
The remainder of the T20 squad is the same as defeated Pakistan 4-1 in January, with just Ben Sears making way for Lockie Ferguson, with the latter returning for the Auckland Aces in the Ford Trophy this Sunday, before joining up with the Black Caps for Wednesday's first game in Wellington.
Selector Sam Wells said the unavailability of Williamson and Mitchell presented opportunities for others.
"It's never ideal missing two of your best players for such a big series, but in saying that, we do have a lot of faith in the guys coming in," he said.
"Both Josh and Rachin have been in our white-ball squads this summer and it's really exciting for them to now get this opportunity.
"Josh hits the ball as long and as hard as anyone and we were encouraged by his performances with the ball in his maiden ODI series against Bangladesh before Christmas.
"Rachin's talent and class has been clear to all over the past six months, and similar to Josh, it's great to have his all-round skill-set to call on in this squad."
Michael Bracewell (finger injury) and Jimmy Neesham (Bangladesh Premier League) were unavailable for selection.
Josh Clarkson in action for the Central Stags Photo: PHOTOSPORT
BLACKCAPS T20I squad
Mitchell Santner (c)
Finn Allen
Trent Boult (games 2 & 3)
Mark Chapman
Josh Clarkson*
Devon Conway (wk)
Lockie Ferguson
Matt Henry
Adam Milne
Glenn Phillips
Rachin Ravindra
Tim Seifert (wk)
Ish Sodhi
Tim Southee (game 1)
*Potential T20I debut
The last time the two teams met in a T20I series was in early 2021, when the Black Caps prevailed 3-2 courtesy of a victory in game five in Wellington.
With blockbuster crowds in store for all three matches, Wells said the series would provide a great occasion for the players to test themselves against a high quality side.
"Facing Australia is always special for a New Zealand side and even more so when it's at home in front of a big Kiwi crowd," he said.
"Australia has named a strong squad which is packed with power and match-winners, so it promises to be an entertaining series.
"With a T20 World Cup just around the corner in June, the series should provide a good gauge of where the sides are at."
The Test series follows the T20s and gets underway at the Basin Reserve with the first Test starting on Thursday 19 February, followed by the second Test at Hagley Oval starting on Friday 8 March.
Series Overview
1st T20I - 7:10pm, Wednesday 21 February - Sky Stadium, Wellington
2nd T20I - 7:10pm, Friday 23 February - Eden Park, Auckland
3rd T20I - 1pm, Sunday 25 February - Eden Park, Auckland
Australia T20 squad:
Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Jason Behrendorff, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Short, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
