New Zealand is currently hosting Australia for a quick-paced T20I series. The opening fixture on October 1 will be followed by two consecutive clashes on October 3 and October 4, respectively, in Mount Maunganui. However, the hosts’ usual T20I skipper, Mitchell Santner, has not been named in the squad for the ongoing white-ball series.
The news from the first T20I is Australia have won the toss and chose to field first.
Australia XI: Mitchell Marsh(c), Travis Head, Matthew Short, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Owen, Tim David, Alex Carey(w), Ben Dwarshuis, Xavier Bartlett, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
New Zealand XI: Tim Seifert(w), Devon Conway, Tim Robinson, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, Bevon Jacobs, Michael Bracewell(c), Zakary Foulkes, Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, Jacob Duffy
Notably, the star Black Caps all-rounder was expected to make a comeback in the current series after undergoing abdominal surgery last month. But the player is yet to recover from the groin issue, which he picked up during his stint with the Northern Superchargers in The Hundred 2025.
As Santner has been sidelined from the home 20-over series, wicketkeeper-batter Michael Bracewell is leading their 14-member squad against Australia. Alongside the 33-year-old, several other key players, including Lockie Ferguson, Adam Milne and Glenn Phillips, have also been ruled out of the New Zealand squad for the three-match contest due to injuries.
However, Bracewell holds a great captaincy record in the format, winning six out of the nine fixtures while leading the Kiwis. Interestingly, all 10 matches of the batter as the skipper of the side have come against Pakistan, including the latest home series against Salman Ali Agha and Co. in March 2025. A dominating show from the hosts had helped them to clinch that series with a scoreline of 4-1.
“Never nice to lose your skipper, but these things do happen. Michael has already been the captain of this team and did a great job against Pakistan. So, fully confident in how he will lead the team,” stated New Zealand’s coach Rob Walter.
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The Black Caps all-rounder has bagged 124 wickets, including three four-wicket hauls, at an impressive economy of 7.06 in 114 T20I matches so far. He has also contributed with the willow to put up 735 runs, which also includes an unbeaten half-century against the Netherlands in 2022.
However, Santner could not produce an impactful performance in the recently concluded tri-nation T20I series, involving South Africa and Zimbabwe. The skipper managed to scalp only four wickets in five matches of the series and scored just 10 runs in three innings. But his side had pulled off a stunning three-run victory to edge out the Proteas in the nail-biting Final clash.
Michael Bracewell (C), Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes, Matt Henry, Bevon Jacobs, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Tim Robinson, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi.
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