For the first time in five years, Adam Milne has been handed a central contract by New Zealand Cricket (NZC). The 31-year-old fast bowler participated in 16 white-ball matches for his country’s side the previous year and could play in the upcoming 50-over World Cup in India.
Gary Stead, the head coach of the Black Caps, stated of Adam, “Adam has worked exceptionally hard and has shown good resilience over the past few years to be in a position to earn this contract offer.”
“He’s always been a top-class bowler, and we were impressed by his consistent contributions in the recent home summer and tour of Pakistan.”
Ajaz Patel is conspicuously absent from the board’s 20-man contract list for the 2023–24 season. The left-arm spinner, who last year played just two Tests and no games for the white-ball sides, became just the third bowler in Test cricket history to claim all ten wickets in an innings.
The trio of Trent Boult, Colin de Grandhomme, and Martin Guptill, all of whom had previously asked to be released from their NZC contracts in order to play more frequently in international franchise cricket, is also missing from the list. However, according to NZC, Boult has agreed to be available for the Black Caps for a portion of the playing schedule and has been given a casual playing agreement as a result.
Finn Allen, Tom Blundell, Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Blair Tickner, Neil Wagner, Kane Williamson, and Will Young are among the central players under contract for 2023–2024.
