O'Rourke ruled out of second Zim Test

New Zealand fast bowler Will O'Rourke on Wednesday has been ruled out of the second Test against Zimbabwe after suffering a back injury, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) confirmed on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old pacer experienced stiffness in his back during the third day of the opening Test at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo last week. O'Rourke bowled 23 overs in the match and picked up three wickets, playing a key role in New Zealand's dominant nine-wicket victory. With O'Rourke unavailable, left-arm pacer Ben Lister has been added to the squad as cover. Lister, who has represented New Zealand in limited-overs cricket, is yet to make his Test debut.

Lister has yet to play a Test match, has appeared in three ODIs and 12 T20Is for New Zealand, with his last international outing coming over a year ago in Pakistan.

The second and final Test of the series is scheduled to begin on August 7, with New Zealand aiming for a clean sweep following their emphatic performance in the first Test. Earlier this week, New Zealand all-rounder Nathan Smith was also ruled out of the second Test against Zimbabwe due to an abdominal strain.

All-rounder Zakary Foulkes has been named as his replacement, earning his maiden call-up to the Test squad.Smith sustained the injury on the second day of the first Test in Bulawayo while batting. An MRI scan later confirmed the strain, which is expected to sideline him for two to four weeks.

The 27-year-old had played a key role in New Zealand's first-innings bowling effort, returning figures of 3/20 as Zimbabwe were dismissed for 149.

However, he retired hurt on 22 off 79 balls during New Zealand's innings and did not take the field thereafter.

New Zealand Test squad: Tom Latham (captain), Tom Blundell (wicket keeper), Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Matt Fisher, Matt Henry, Daryl Mitchell, Ben Lister, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Zakary Foulkes, Nathan Smith and Will Young.

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