The 2026 T20 World Cup selection conundrum for the Black Caps
Tuesday, 6 January 2026
ANALYSIS: The final three places will have taken up most of the decision-making process in selecting the Black Caps squad for the T20 World Cup.
New Zealand’s 15-man squad will be announced at 10am on Wednesday, and there won’t be any major surprises for the tournament starting in India and Sri Lanka early next month.
Coach Rob Walter and selection manager Gavin Larsen would likely have had 12 names down in black marker pen weeks ago - batters Tim Seifert, Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Tim Robinson, Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell; allrounders Mitchell Santner and Glenn Phillips; and bowlers Matt Henry, Jacob Duffy, Ish Sodhi and Adam Milne.
That left three relatively tidy packages to consider - another middle-order bat, an allrounder, and a seamer; with the one nagging headache being the fitness status of speedster Lockie Ferguson.
Mark Chapman and Bevon Jacobs are a contrast in experience - the 31-year-old left-hander has played a century of T20Is, the 23yo right-hander just four.
Jacobs has looked sharp in the Super Smash - 109 runs from two innings at a Strike Rate of 178.68, and while Chapman didn’t have a particularly productive 2025, he probably did enough in his last two bats versus the Windies to stay in the squad.
Zak Foulkes and Kyle Jamieson could be battling each other for a role with the ball in the squad.
Right-arm inswinging quick bowler Foulkes has had a busy summer, playing in all three formats for the Black Caps. Only three of those were T20Is however, with limited results. Jamieson’s T20I figures are not flattering though - 21 wickets from 23 matches with an Economy Rate of 9.20 and an average of 35.14.
Michael Bracewell likely has the inside running over Jimmy Neesham for the final allrounder’s place, with both players - along with Foulkes and Jamieson - in the NZ squad for the five T20I matches in India late this month. That group will be minus Seifert, Allen and Milne, with the opening duo having BBL commitments and the pace bowler playing in the SA20.
With regular captain Santner injured at the start of the home international season, Bracewell took the reins versus Australia and remained in the squad against England and the West Indies. Neesham was a late call-up to the squad against Australia and starred with the ball at Bay Oval, but New Zealand may favour Bracewell’s off-spin being available if wanted for their Group D matches in Chennai and Ahmedabad, rather than Neesham’s seamers, with both players offering big late-order hitting.
Seifert and Allen established themselves as the preferred - and highly-successful - T20I opening partnership at the end of last season, and while Allen’s foot injury hasn’t allowed them to combine since, they’ve been rolling along just fine with their respective franchises in the Big Bash League - both averaging in the mid-30s with Strike Rates above 170.
Conway looms as an ideal squad member - in-form, can keep wickets, offers a contrast in style and may be an option on slower pitches.
Legspinner Ish Sodhi didn’t play the series against England when Santner returned, but took seven wickets in only 12.3 overs versus the Windies to book his plane ticket. Only three players have taken more T20I wickets than the 33-year-old.
New Zealand will start their 2026 World Cup against Afghanistan - who defeated them in the same circumstances at the 2024 tournament - on February 8 before facing the UAE, South Africa and Canada, with the top two teams from the group qualifying for the Super Eight.
Possible Black Caps squad for the 2026 T20 World Cup:
Mitchell Santner (captain), Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Tim Robinson, Rachin Ravindra, Devon Conway (wk), Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Adam Milne, Jacob Duffy.