Lockie Ferguson. | Image: X
Lockie Ferguson who has been the standout pacer for New Zealand, suffered a hamstring injury in the Qualifier 1 of the ongoing ILT20 competition. In Qualifier 1, the 33-year-old cricketer suffered the injury while captaining the Desert Vipers against the Dubai Capitals.
The pacer’s participation in the Champions Trophy, which begins on February 19, is now in jeopardy as a result of this setback. Lockie has undergone several scans to determine the severity of the injury.
New Zealand head coach Gary Stead is considering every possibility as he awaits for more details regarding the extent of Lockie’s hamstring injury. Stead mentioned that the pacer could also not travel for their tri-series in Pakistan.
“Lockie had a scan yesterday [Thursday] in the UAE,” Stead addressed ahead of the tri-series opener against hosts Pakistan. “We’ve got the images here and [we are] waiting for our radiologist to give us a report on the extent of it. Small hamstring injury, by the look of it, so we’re just waiting on a timeline of advice around that before we make a decision on whether Lockie travels here [Pakistan] or whether we do have to replace him for the Champions Trophy.”
New Zealand boosted by the return of star players
The New Zealand team would have been delighted by the return of Kane Williamson and Devon Conway who have joined the national side in Lahore after finishing their franchise commitments with Durban Super Giants (DSG) and Joburg Super Kings (JSK) respectively.
The New Zealand team has announced their squad for the upcoming tri-series and Champions Trophy. Seamer Jacob Duffy, who had already been added to the squad as standby for Ferguson, could be in the selection frame, if Lockie continues to remain on the sidelines.
New Zealand squad for tri-series and Champions Trophy: Mitchell Santner (captain), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Ben Sears, Nathan Smith, Kane Williamson, Will Young, Jacob Duffy (tri-series only).
