14 Jun 2016

Nicholls and Worker get Black Caps contracts for the first time

11:03 am on 14 June 2016

The return of Ish Sodhi and Colin Munro, and the maiden appearance of Henry Nicholls and George Worker, are the main features of an expanded, 21-strong Black Caps contract list for 2016-17.

George Worker

George Worker Photo: PHOTOSPORT

Sodhi, Munro, Nicholls and Worker replace Brendon and Nathan McCullum, who have both retired from all international cricket, and Grant Elliott - who is now only available for Twenty20 internationals.

The contracts run from 1 August 2016 through to 31 July 2017, increasing the list from 20 to 21 players, as set out in the latest variation to the Master Agreement between NZC and the New Zealand Cricket Players' Association.

Sodhi and Munro missed out last year, having been last contracted in the 2014-15 season. Nicholls and Worker both made their international debuts in the past 12 months, Nicholls receiving an elevated contract during the summer.

Henry Nicholls in action against Pakistan at the Basin Reserve, Monday 25th January 2016. Copyright Photo.: Grant Down / www.photosport.nz

Henry Nicholls in action against Pakistan at the Basin Reserve Photo: Photosport

Black Caps selector Gavin Larsen said the limited number of changes was representative of the consistent approach to selection.

"We've built a strong group of core players over the past couple of years and that's been a key factor to the consistency of the team's performance," said Larsen.

"When we've brought new players into the group, we've been really happy with how they've adapted and performed on the international stage. Henry and George have made bright starts to their Black Caps careers and we look forward to watching their ongoing development.

"After missing out last year, Ish and Colin have both worked extremely hard on their game, as we saw with their performances for us in the shorter formats this summer. They thoroughly deserve their contracts.

"It's also exciting to see Ish make his way back into the Test squad for the upcoming series in Africa."

A set criteria is used to rank players across all three forms of the game, with Tests receiving twice the weighting of one day internationals and Twenty20s.

The 21 players offered Black Caps contracts for the 2016-2017 year are:

Corey Anderson - Northern Districts

Trent Boult - Northern Districts

Doug Bracewell - Central Districts

Mark Craig - Otago

Martin Guptill - Auckland

Matt Henry - Canterbury

Tom Latham - Canterbury

Mitchell McClenaghan - Auckland

Adam Milne - Central Districts

Colin Munro - Auckland

James Neesham - Otago

Henry Nicholls - Canterbury

Luke Ronchi - Wellington

Mitchell Santner - Northern Districts

Ish Sodhi - Northern Districts

Tim Southee - Northern Districts

Ross Taylor - Central Districts

Neil Wagner - Otago

BJ Watling - Northern Districts

Kane Williamson - Northern Districts

George Worker - Central Districts

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