Kane Williamson named captain as New Zealand announce squad for ICC Cricket World Cup 2023

Kane Williamson is back in New Zealand squad and will make his return in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.

The ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 is about to start in a few weeks. This tournament will see the top ten teams across the globe compete to become the ultimate world champions. The tournament will start on October 5, which is a virtually rematch of the last edition's final between England and New Zealand. Both teams will come face-to-face in the tournament's opener at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Ten venues across India will host these games, and there will be a total of 48 matches, including the final on November 19. Every team will play one game each against the other nine opponents, and four of those ten teams will make it to the semi-finals. With the World Cup coming up, all the participating teams are revealing their squads that will compete in the mega event. On Monday, the New Zealand Cricket Board also announced their squad, which consists of 15 members.

Kane Williamson is back and will lead New Zealand in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023

The NZC announced the New Zealand squad, and it saw the massive return of captain Kane Williamson, who had been out of action since March because of an injury. The Kiwi skipper got injured during the opening game of the IPL 2023 between the Gujarat Titans and the Chennai Super Kings. He underwent knee surgery and was on crutches at one point. But Williamson has shown a great recovery and has now made it to the team.

It will surely give the team a huge boost, as Kane Williamson is the backbone of the team. Apart from batting, his leadership skills are also invaluable. However, the squad saw some notable omissions. Veteran opener Martin Guptill has been dropped, while Michael Bracewell couldn't make it to the team due to injury. Meanwhile, Tim Seifert and Finn Allen have also been dropped.

Spin all-rounders Mark Chapman and Rachin Ravindra are able to make a place in the team after some recent success. Trent Boult and Tim Southee will share the pace-bowling workload, while Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson are the bowlers who can clock 150 km/h at will. James Neesham is back after missing the English ODIs. Tom Latham, Glenn Philips, and Devon Conway are the wicket-keepers available in the squad.

New Zealand's Squad for ICC Cricket World Cup 2023:

Kane Williamson (c), Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham (vc & wk), Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Jimmy Neesham, Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Will Young.