New Mumbai Indians signing earns maiden New Zealand call-up in NZ vs SL 2024-25 series
Auckland Aces batter Bevon Jacobs has earned his maiden call-up to New Zealand's senior men's team ahead of the T20I series against Sri Lanka. The home series will be Mitchell Santner's first as captain. He has succeeded Kane Williamson to lead New Zealand's white-ball side.
Jacobs has turned heads with his performances in the domestic circuit across formats. The 22-year-old has accumulated 287 runs in four matches of the Plunkett Shield, averaging 41 alongside a best score of 80. The South Africa-born cricketer also has an impressive strike rate of 188.73 in nine T20s alongside an average of 33.50. The Mumbai Indians signed Jacobs for ₹30 lakh at the IPL 2025 auction last month. He will join his New Zealand teammates Santner and Trent Boult in the team.
New Zealand's chief selector Sam Wells has expressed his excitement to see Jacobs at the international level, given the firepower he has with the bat. Wells said (as quoted by nzc.nz):
"It’s obviously an exciting time for Bevon and his family. He’s a promising player with a lot of talent and we’re looking forward to exposing him to international cricket. He’s clearly got a lot of power with the bat, but he’s also shown in the longer formats that he has a decent technique and temperament."
Jacobs has been selected only for the T20Is alongside Tim Robinson and Zak Foulkes. Tom Latham, Will O'Rourke, and Will Young will replace them for ODIs. While Mitch Hay will keep wickets in T20Is, Latham is likely to do so in the 50-over games.
New Zealand squad: Mitchell Santner (c), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes (T20I only), Mitch Hay, Matt Henry, Bevon Jacobs (T20I only), Tom Latham (ODI only), Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke (ODI only), Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Robinson (T20I only), Nathan Smith, Will Young (ODI only).
Kane Williamson, Devon Conway and other key players unavailable for New Zealand duty
Meanwhile, Kane Williamson and Devon Conway rendered themselves unavailable for selection for the Sri Lanka series due to their SA20 commitments. The likes of Lockie Ferguson, Finn Allen, Adam Milne, and Tim Seifert have also missed out due to their Big Bash League contracts.
In the same interview, Sam Wells also underlined that the squads were selected keeping in mind the upcoming edition of the Champions Trophy. He said:
"As with the squads that recently toured Sri Lanka, we’re keen to keep exposing new talent to the big stage and it’s nice to have an experienced core of players around them. The Champions Trophy, like all ICC pinnacle events, is an obvious incentive for players and I know many will be keen to put their best foot forward in the ODI series to be in the frame for selection."
New Zealand and Sri Lanka will play the three T20Is on December 28, 30, and January 2. The dates for the ODI series are January 5, 8, and 11.