New Zealand coach Gary Stead questions technical committee's verdict over Adam Milne

New Zealand head coach Gary stead has taken a dig at cricket's governing body after they didn’t allow Adam Milne to play the 20-20 World Cup match against Pakistan on Tuesday (October 26). The fast bowler was asked to join the team after pacer Lockie Ferguson was ruled out of the global tournament owing to a calf tear.

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The New Zealand Cricket (NZC) had put in a request to the apex body's technical committee to allow Milne to join the team ahead of their opening match after MRI scans sealed the fate of Ferguson.

Milne has been team as travelling reserve and the New Zealand management was hopeful that the tearaway quick will be allowed to play against Pakistan. New Zealand had also applied with an independent doctor’s report in hope that Milne will be allowed to play. However, that was not the case to be. Stead was disappointed by the technical committee's decision and felt Milne would have been a crucial player against Pakistan.

“We tried pretty hard to get across the line with the ICC our replacement player, but it wasn’t to be. That was really disappointing for us because Adam Milne is someone waiting in the wings as a like-for-like replacement,” Stead said to nzherald.co.nz

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Stead further gave the example of Pakistan pacer bowler Harris Rauf and said that having a pacer who can hit the hard lengths could have made the difference for his team.

“You can’t say you know for sure if it would have made a difference in the game, but for us, on that wicket, pace bowling and hitting the pitch as hard as what Adam does or Lockie does would have been a difference, we think. I think Haris Rauf showed for Pakistan the difference that it can make.

“What we were told is they don’t give clearance on the same day, so we’ll question that reason and continue to seek clarification on that.”
Rauf’s four wickets set up a five-wicket victory for Pakistan in the ongoing 20-20 World Cup.