Auckland: Experienced skipper Kane Williamson will make his long-awaited return to Test cricket during New Zealand's tour of England that commences next month.
The Black Caps on Wednesday named a strong 20-player squad for the three-match series that starts at Lord's on June 2, with Williamson set to feature at Test level for the first time since November last year.
New Zealand squad:
Kane Williamson (c), Trent Boult, Tom Blundell (wk), Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Colin de Grandhomme, Jacob Duffy, Cameron Fletcher, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Rachin Ravindra, Hamish Rutherford, Tim Southee, Blair Tickner, Neil Wagner, Will Young
Williamson has made a full recovery from the elbow injury that saw him miss drawn series against Bangladesh and South Africa and is currently captaining Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League.
The inclusion of the third ranked player on the MRF Tyres Men's ICC Test Batting Rankings will be a welcome addition to a New Zealand side who are currently in sixth place on the World Test Championship standings and in desperate need of adding some points.