Ferguson felt tightness in his right calf following training Tuesday night and a subsequent MRI scan revealed grade two tear which would require three to four weeks for recovery.
Follow Us
New Zealand pacer Adam Milne has been called up to replace injured Lockie Ferguson in the 15-man squad for the ongoing 2021 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in UAE. As per the New Zealand press release, Ferguson felt tightness in his right calf following training Tuesday night and a subsequent MRI scan revealed grade two tear which would require three to four weeks for recovery. Milne is with the team in UAE as a traveling reserve, but couldn’t play against Pakistan on Tuesday because of delay in getting the approval from the International Cricket Council.
“It’s a real shame for Lockie to have this happen on the eve of the tournament and the entire team is really feeling for him right now,” New Zealand head coach Gary Stead said.
“He’s a massive part of our T20 side and has been in such good form – so to lose him at this time is a blow. However, we are fortunate to have a like for like replacement in the form of Adam Milne who has been with the squad training for the past two weeks.”
Ferguson featured in the second of New Zealand’s warm-up match against England on October 20 and returned figures of 1 for 19. The 30-year-old recently played eight games for Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League 2021 season in UAE and took 13 winkets. He is one of the quickest bowlers in world cricket right now and has the ability clock speeds of well over140 kph on a consistent basis.
Milne is a like-for-like replacement for Ferguson. The 29-year-old played in the UAE leg of the 2021 IPL for Mumbai Indians, collecting three wickets in as many games.
He is someone who can also hit the deck hard, just like Ferguson and can turn out to be a potent weapon for the Black Caps in the tournament in the absence of Ferguson.
New Zealand lost their opening match of the tournament by five wickets to Pakistan on Tuesday at Sharjah cricket stadium. Pakistan pacer Haris Rauf’s four-wicket haul dismantled the New Zealand batting line up as they were folded for 134 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in 20 overs. Veteran Shoaib Malik and Asif Ali helped Pakistan to the finish line after the top order batters except Mohammad Rizwan (33) struggled.
Absence of a quickie seems to have affected New Zealand’s result in the first match as they couldn’t field Milne against Pakistan.
Stead said after the match, “You can’t say you know for sure it would have made a difference in the game, but for us, on that wicket, pace bowling and hitting the pitch as hard as what Adam does or what Lockie does, would have been a difference, we think, and I think Haris Rauf showed that for Pakistan, the difference that it can make.”
“We felt that that pitch was one that would suit the seamers a lot more,” he said.
“The up and down nature of the pitch and the work we’ve done around the scouting and what the data was telling us pointed towards seam bowlers and pace bowlers being more effective.”
