Lister replaces injured Sears for ODI series in the West Indies

Ben Sears has been ruled out of the upcoming series of five ODIs in the West Indies because of an ankle injury. Ben Lister has been called into the 16-man squad as Sears' replacement and will assemble over the coming days with the squad in Guyana, where the first three games will be played. Sears had experienced some ongoing pain in his ankle since the four-day Test against Ireland in May, and it flared up during the final day of the third Test against England at Trent Bridge, which New Zealand won to take the series 2-1.

The decision to withdraw him from the ODIs in the Caribbean and send him home for further treatment is precautionary, as New Zealand Cricket put it. Lister, who made his ODI debut in 2023, has featured four times in the format, picking up six wickets. He was in the squad the last time New Zealand played ODIs, away against Bangladesh in April.

Injuries to key fast bowlers have been a major concern for New Zealand in recent times. Jacob Duffy, who missed the recent Test series in England while on paternity leave, has returned to the ODI squad for the West Indies, but Blair Tickner has had to sit this one out to undergo surgery on his ankle. Senior fast bowlers Will O'Rourke, Kyle Jamieson and Matt Henry have been rested for the series following their heavy workloads during the England Tests.

"Having a stable of fast bowlers is critical and you ask any selectors around the world from any country, you're going to get the same answer," Gavin Larsen, New Zealand's head selector, said on Wednesday. "I'm touching wood here, but we are in a reasonably good position at the moment in New Zealand cricket where we've got a number of good quality fast bowlers. So the intention, certainly, is to carefully manage those bowlers. But look, already you can see off the back of three Test matches against England, you can see the attrition rate. I'm glancing down and seeing four names that are back on the physio table or under the knife, so I'm very conscious of that. The depth of those fast bowlers is crucial and us managing their workloads and their return-to-play processes is critical."

Apart from Duffy, the squad now has in its fast-bowling attack Nathan Smith, Kristian Clarke, Matt Fisher and Lister, with frontline spin options in returning captain Mitchell Santner, Michael Bracewell and Jayden Lennox. The first three ODIs will be played in Providence, Guyana, on July 11, 13 and 16, and the fourth and fifth games at Kensington Oval in Barbados on July 19 and 21.