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New Zealand’s preparations for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 have been disrupted by fresh injury concerns, with fast bowler Adam Milne and all-rounder Michael Bracewell both picking up knocks just weeks before the global tournament.
Milne sustained a left hamstring injury while bowling for Sunrisers Eastern Cape during an SA20 fixture on Sunday.
New Zealand Cricket (NZC) confirmed on Tuesday that the pacer is undergoing assessment to determine the severity of the injury, casting uncertainty over his availability for the World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.
Bracewell, meanwhile, suffered a left calf strain while fielding in the third and final ODI against India in Indore on Sunday.
The all-rounder had just captained New Zealand to a historic 2–1 ODI series win over India, making the setback particularly untimely.
Despite the injury, Bracewell has travelled with the T20I squad to Nagpur, where New Zealand are set to begin a five-match T20I series against India.
Head coach Rob Walter confirmed that the team management will monitor Bracewell closely over the coming days before taking a call on his continued involvement in the tour.
“Bracewell will be treated and monitored over the coming days before a decision on his further involvement in the tour is confirmed,” NZC said in a statement.
With player availability becoming a growing concern, all-rounder Kristian Clarke has been added to the squad as cover for the first three T20Is against India, starting on Wednesday.
Walter acknowledged the challenges posed by injuries and player movement but said the inclusion of Clarke would help balance the squad.
“We’ve got a fair bit of player movement at the moment with some guys returning from injury for this series, others joining us immediately from franchise cricket, and the rest coming off the India ODI series,” Walter said.
“We want to ensure we’ve got enough pace-bowling options for the first three games of this series, and it’s a great opportunity for Kristian to stay on with the group a little longer on his first tour of India.”
New Zealand will begin their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign in Group D against Afghanistan in Chennai on February 8.
Mitchell Santner (c), Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Seifert (wk), Ish Sodhi.
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