A statement from New Zealand Cricket (NZC) informed that batter Mark Chapman and pace bowler Zak Foulkes have both been ruled out of series due to injury. Chapman is currently suffering from hamstring injury while Foulkes is dealing with hip flexor issue.
The Black Caps batter Chapman suffered a left hamstring tear during the European T20 league last month and was on track to be available for the five-match ODI series against India starting in November. Foulkes, on the other hand, injured his right hip flexor during a recent Canterbury training and his return to play timeline is still to be determined.
The NZC have named all-rounder Josh Clarkson and fast bowler Blair Tickner have been called in to the T20I squad to replace Chapman and Foulkes. New Zealand coach Rob Walter said he was grateful to be able to bring Clarkson and Tickner into the squad.
“I’m gutted for Mark and Zak and I wish them both a smooth recovery,” said Walter in a NZC statement. “We’re fortunate to be able to lean on the expertise of Josh and Blair. I know they’re both very excited to be involved in what’s shaping up to be an epic T20 series.”
The 32-year-old Chapman has turned out in 113 T20I matches in his career for Hong Kong and New Zealand and scored 2074 runs at an average of 25.92 with 1 century and 10 fifties at a strike-rate of 135.73.
Overall in his T20 career, Chapman has turned out in 250 matches with 4923 runs at an average of 26.9 with a strike-rate of 138.44 with 2 hundreds and 28 fifties.
The 24-year-old Foulkes has represented New Zealand in 22 T20I matches and claimed 22 wickets at an average of 28.81 so far. In his T20 career, he has claimed 77 wickets in 68 matches at an average of 22.93.
New Zealand T20I squad vs India
Mitchell Santner (C), Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, Josh Clarkson, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Bevon Jacobs, Kyle Jamieson, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell¸ Glenn Phillips, Tim Seifert, Nathan Smith, Blair Tickner
New Zealand vs India T20I series schedule
| Day | Date | Match | Venue |
| Thu | Oct 22 | 1st T20I | Christchurch |
| Sat | Oct 24 | 2nd T20I | Christchurch |
| Tue | Oct 27 | 3rd T20I | Wellington |
| Fri | Oct 30 | 4th T20I | Auckland |
| Sun | Nov 1 | 5th T20I | Hamilton |
Team India will take on New Zealand in five T20Is, five ODIs and two Test series beginning on October 22.