Martin Guptill ruled out of 2nd ODI against Australia

What’s the story?

New Zealand opener Martin Guptill has been ruled out of the 2^nd one-dayer against Australia in Napier, scheduled for Thursday, the 2^nd of February. Dean Brownlie will replace Guptill, confirmed the coach, Mike Hesson on Tuesday.

“Martin felt a tightness in his left hamstring while fielding yesterday and after being monitored for the last 24 hours it’s been apparent that he won’t quite be ready for Napier,” Hesson said. “He’ll remain with the team and we’ll continue to monitor him ahead of the third ODI in Hamilton.”

In case you didn’t know...

Guptill injured his hamstring during the 1^st ODI on Sunday in Auckland, in which New Zealand eked out a win by six runs. The New Zealand opener made a solid contribution at the top of the order, scoring 61 off 73 balls and he was well complimented by Neil Broom, who top scored with 73 off 75 deliveries.

The hosts then reduced Australia to 67/6 after setting a target of 287. Marcus Stoinis, however, stole the show with his brilliant maiden one-day century. The 27-year-old batsman scored an unbeaten 146, with a total of nine boundaries and eleven sixes at Eden Park and almost took the match away from New Zealand.

However, a runout with 6 runs left to get, proved to be costly for the visitors. Mitchell Santer was the pick of the bowlers as he bagged three wickets while Trent Boult and Lockie Ferguson chipped in with two wickets each.

The heart of the matter

The opener injured his hamstring during the thrilling first one-day international against Australia on Sunday.

Following Guptill’s injury, Brownlie has been named as his replacement. The 32-year-old, who last played a one-day international in 2014 against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi, has been a consistent performer in the domestic circuit averaging just over 37 in List A cricket.

Brownlie has represented New Zealand in 14 Tests, 10 ODIs and 5 T20 internationals and scored a solid 34 in his last game.

What’s next?

With the first game in the bag, New Zealand will look to seal the series and win the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy while Australia will look to bounce back in the next game on Thursday.

Sportskeeda Take:

Martin Guptill’s injury will be a big blow to the New Zealand team, considering he is one of their best players in the shorter formats of the game. They still possess some serious firepower though and should be able to cope with his absence, especially against an Australian side bereft of their stars.