|| CF DESK ||

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has decided to opt-out of the three-match T20I series against India to focus on the Test series that starts on November 25 in Kanpur.

New Zealand cricket board announced the T20I squad for the series on Monday with fast bowler Tim Southee named the captain for the opening game on November 17 in Williamson's absence.

"With the opening game of the T20 series on Wednesday evening, followed by games on Friday and Sunday night - the decision was made for Williamson to join the Test specialist group already training in Jaipur as they focus on red-ball preparation," the New Zealand Cricket stated in its release.

"Tim Southee will captain the T20 side for the opening game on Wednesday, while Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, and Mitchell Santner are also available for both series," it further stated.

Lockie Ferguson is expected to be available for selection with his recovery from a right calf strain progressing well.

The three T20 Internationals will be played in Jaipur, followed by matches in Ranchi (November 19) and Kolkata (November 21).

The T20I series will be followed by a two-match Test series with the second match set to be played at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, starting on December 3.

T20 squad:

Todd Astle, Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Kyle Jamieson, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Seifert (wk), Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee