With IPL on horizon, New Zealand rest T20 regulars for series against Pakistan

Wellington: New Zealand have rested a majority of their T20 regulars for the home series against Pakistan with the IPL around the corner.

The series, comprising five T20Is, begins March 16 while the IPL begins March 22.

Michael Bracewell, who was one of the main performers for New Zealand in the Champions Trophy, will lead the side in the absence of Mitchell Santner.

Besides Bracewell, six more players in the T20 squad featured in the 50-over Champions Trophy. New Zealand lost the final to India on Sunday.

Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra and white-ball captain Santner were unavailable for selection due to IPL commitments.

Kyle Jamieson and Will O'Rourke have been included only for the first three games of the series, as the selectors seek to manage the workload of the pace bowlers returning from the Champions Trophy.

Matt Henry, who finished as the leading wicket-taker in the tournament despite missing the final through injury, has been selected for games four and five, subject to further assessment once the ODI squad arrives home on Wednesday.

Bevon Jacobs, who was part of the squad for the recent T20 series against Sri Lanka, was unavailable due to IPL commitments, while Kane Williamson wasn't considered for selection after making himself unavailable.

Selector Sam Wells said the Pakistan series was important for several reasons.

"We're certainly starting to narrow our sights on the ICC T20 World Cup in India next February and March," he said.

"We made it clear in our planning and communication with players that availability for that tournament and the build-up to it was required to be considered for this series against Pakistan.

"Half of this squad is only returning from the Champions Trophy on Wednesday and so we're going to need to manage those players really carefully," he said.

Squad: Michael Bracewell (c), Finn Allen, Mark Chapman, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes (games 4 & 5), Mitch Hay, Matt Henry (games 4 & 5) Kyle Jamieson (games 1, 2 & 3), Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Will O'Rourke (games 1, 2 & 3), Tim Robinson, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi.