India's ODI tour of New Zealand postponed: Report
Sep 16, 2021
Wellington [New Zealand], September 16 : India's tour of New Zealand for three ODIs has been postponed due to travel restrictions imposed by COVID-19 and the packed calendar of New Zealand Cricket (NZC).
According to a report in stuff.co.nz, an NZC spokesperson confirmed that the Virat Kohli-led side will now tour New Zealand later in 2022 after the conclusion of ICC men's T20 World Cup in Australia.
The Kiwis will be locking horns with Bangladesh, The Netherlands, and South Africa in New Zealand before the ICC women's World Cup which is slated to be played in the country in March 2022.
"We've got to be mindful of players coming back from a long winter and we've got to give them time at home as well," stuff.co.nz quoted NZC chief executive David White as previously saying.
Meanwhile, New Zealand is already scheduled to tour India in November for two Tests and three T20s after the T20 World Cup.
Also, New Zealand bowling coach Shane Jurgensen will stay on with the team for the full tour of India later this year rather than returning to the country following the T20I series as initially planned.
"The rearrangement of Jurgensen's winter touring commitments came about after his scheduled departure on Friday was delayed as a result of visa complications caused by the recent nationwide lockdown," NZC said in a statement on Monday.
NZC said Jurgensen was due to link up with the current Kiwi squad in Pakistan to take over the reins for the five-game T20I series starting in Lahore next weekend.
Instead, Jurgensen will now depart directly for the ICC T20 World Cup in the UAE in early October, alongside regular New Zealand coaches Gary Stead and Luke Ronchi.
