New Zealand fast bowler Will O'Rourke is out of the second Test due to injury

The second and final Test of the current Test series between Zimbabwe and New Zealand will be played in Bulawayo from August 7. New Zealand fast bowler Will O'Rourke has been eliminated for this Test after suffering a back injury. New Zealand won the first Test against Zimbabwe by 9 wickets. Will O'Rourke was also included in this match and recorded 3 wickets for 28 runs from 10 overs during the second innings. He suffered from a stiffness issue in his back during this match.

The New Zealand Cricket Board said, Will O'Rourke has been called home for examination. Left-arm pacer Ben Lister, who was called up as additional fast bowling cover, will remain with the team for the series and could make his debut in the second and final Test of the series starting on Thursday.

The New Zealand side has been struggling by injuries to its players throughout this series. Prior to Will O'Rourke, all-rounder Nathan Smith had sustained an injury while batting on the second day of the first Test in Bulawayo. A subsequent MRI confirmed an abdominal strain, which will take about two to four weeks to recover from.

Ahead of the Zimbabwe tour, all-rounder Glenn Phillips pulled out of the tour after injuring his right groin during the Major League Cricket (MLC) finals. Bracewell, who was not included in the original squad due to his commitments with The Hundred along with the two-Test series in Bulawayo, replaced Phillips in the team.

Earlier, Test captain Tom Latham was ruled out of the first Test due to a shoulder injury. His status is not clear at the moment if he will play in the second Test. Mitchell Santner captained the first Test. He became the 32nd male Test captain of New Zealand.

New Zealand team: Mitchell Santner (captain), Tom Blundell, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matthew Fisher, Zachary Faulks, Matt Henry, Ben Lister, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Rachin Ravindra, Will Young