Munro has been out of T20 cricket for quite a while as his latest match was against India in February of last year.
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New Zealand batsman Colin Munro admitted he might have played his last match for the Kiwis after he was not picked for the series against Bangladesh, Pakistan, and the ICC T20 World Cup. Coach Gary Stead said that he had spoken to Munro after not being selected. Stead believes that Munro indeed has probably played his last game for New Zealand. As recently as 2018, Munro was the top-ranked T20 batter in the world. The dip in his fortunes seems quite drastic for a player of his caliber. Munro did participate in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) and The Hundred where he did not have exceptional performances but was still pretty good.
“Extremely gutted to miss out on this. It was definitely a goal of mine that I wanted to tick off,” Colin Munro wrote on Instagram after he did not find his name. “Looks like I may have played my last game for Black Caps, not by choice,” the 34-year-old added.
Age is definitely not a factor since Martin Guptil is part of the 32-man squad. Guptill will likely make it to the first team. He, alongside Tim Seifert, Devon Conway, and skipper Kane Williamson are the probable starters at the top of the batting order for the Kiwis.
It is not clear why Munro was not selected for the tours. The 34-year-old does have a decent record in T20 cricket. He has an average of 31 with a strike rate of 156 from 65 matches. The latest match came in February last year against India. Stead said at a press conference at Christchurch that Munro had ruled himself out of contention for the Pakistan and Bangladesh series.
“Colin was still available but for the World Cup only, and wasn’t available for any other tours at all. We talked through that decision. In the end, we’ve had a lot of success with guys in our T20 squad the last six months. We know Colin’s been a fine player and still is a fine player,” the Kiwi coach said. “I’m pleased he’s frustrated. When you’ve got a lot of quality players around you can’t fit everyone into 15. Yes, I have spoken to Colin, about a week ago so he’s clear on where he sits,” he added.
Two other omissions from the Kiwi’s T20 world cup squad came as a shock. They were Colin de Grandhomme and pacer Adam Milne. De Grandhomme had suffered an injury last summer that kept him out of action for a while. Daryl Mitchel and Jimmy Neesham move ahead of him as the preferred all-rounders in T20s
Spinner Todd Astle was picked for the World Cup, which meant that there were only four spots for pacers. Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Kyle Jamieson, and Lockie Ferguson were the preferred playrs. Milne can be called upon if New Zealand go through a serious injury problem. That, however, is quite unlikely.
