Auckland: It's not just "pitched" battle on 22 yards that fans care about these days but equally important is the virtual presence, where New Zealand Cricket's social media team grabbed eyeballs with its unique concept of announcing the team for the upcoming World Cup.
"Our 2023 @cricketworldcup squad introduced by their number 1 fans!" BlackCaps captioned the video posted on 'X' (formerly twitter), where family members of the New Zealand players introduced their dear ones with jersey number.
Among the run of the mill content that one comes across in the name of social media battles, the video comes across as cute, warm and sincere, where Kane Williamson's family, Trent Boult's sons, Rachin Ravindra's parents and Jimmy Neesham's grandmother.
The Kiwi side will once again be led by Kane Williamson, who has struggled with a ruptured ACL since March this year and remains doubtful for the tournament openers against defending champion England.
The side finished as the runner-up during the last edition of the event in 2019 at Lord's, which was won by the hosts, England, in a dramatic fashion by boundary count, after both the regulation match and the Super Over ended in a tie.
Williamson and pacer Tim Southee happen to be the senior-most players in the side, having featured in the last three CWCs, since 2011.
New Zealand squad
Kane Williamson (c), Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway (wk), Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips (wk), Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee and Will Young.
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