T20 World Cup: New Zealand’s Daryl Mitchell to return against Sri Lanka, says Tim Southee | Cricket News

SYDNEY: Daryl Mitchell will return for New Zealand‘s third Twenty20 World Cup match against Sri Lanka at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Saturday, Black Caps paceman Tim Southee told reporters on Friday.
All-rounder Mitchell, whose 208 runs helped his side to the final in Dubai last year, missed New Zealand’s impressive 89-run win over hosts and defending champions Australia last weekend after breaking a finger ahead of the tournament broke.
The 31-year-old may have returned against Afghanistan on Wednesday, but the game was washed out and Southee said he would return on Saturday instead, most likely for Mark Chapman.
“Daryl has come through all the tests he needs to go through after suffering a broken hand a few weeks back,” he told reporters at the SCG.
“It’s bad luck for Mark Chapman, but Daryl is such a valuable member of the team and he’s done well for us. So, yeah, now he’s fit and ready, he’s just moving back.”

With just one point from the washout, New Zealand will need to be sure to avoid an upset against Sri Lanka on Saturday before taking on England and Ireland in their final Group 1 matches.
“We know we have to be on our toes every game we play, it’s the nature of this tournament that you can’t really have too many slips,” Southee added.
“T20 cricket brings the teams closer together and we have already seen a number of upsets in this tournament, so every game is extremely important.”
Sri Lanka lost to Australia by seven wickets in their last outing and suffered a series of injuries, but assistant coach Naveed Nawaz said they still felt they had a chance of reaching the semi-finals.
“The spirits are quite high,” he said. “We are all very well motivated and still looking forward to the rest of the tournament.”