WELLINGTON: New Zealand have included uncapped Otago off-spinner Mark Craig in the squad for their three-Test tour of West Indies in June, which was announced on Tuesday.

Craig, who has taken 43 first class wickets at 42.88, was a surprise inclusion in the 15-man party even after his fellow off-spinner Jeetan Patel withdrew for personal reasons.

The Black Caps also included leg-spinner Ish Sodhi for what are expected to be spin-friendly conditions but there was no place for former captain and veteran all-rounder Daniel Vettori, who is still struggling to regain five-day game form after Achilles surgery last year.

Craig, 27, was one of two uncapped players in the squad along with former Australian wicket-keeper Luke Ronchi.

New Zealand-born Ronchi played four One-day Internationals and three Twenty20 Internationals for Australia in 2008 and 2009 and has gone on to play 19 ODIs and eight T20 Internationals since meeting the residential qualification to play for New Zealand in 2013. He will act as understudy to incumbent wicket-keeper B.J. Watling during the Tests.

“Mark has had a strong Plunket Shield taking 22 wickets and his right-arm off-spinners will be valuable against their left-handed heavy top order batting line-up,” coach Mike Hesson said in a news release.

“Luke also provides us with middle order batting cover as he’s a good player of spin bowling.”

New Zealand Cricket (NZC) said Patel had chosen to sit out the tour on personal grounds, although media reported that he ruled himself out in order to concentrate on playing English county cricket for Warwickshire, rather than try to revive a faltering international career.

Hesson said New Zealand’s most potent spin weapon, Vettori, was unavailable because “he felt his bowling loads were not yet up to the intensity of Test cricket”. The 35-year-old last played Test cricket almost two years ago.

Vettori said in February that he was targeting the West Indies tour as the series that would determine if he could continue in the international arena.

“I want to commit to that tour otherwise it will be too hard to keep trying to come back,” Vettori said at the time.

Vettori is one of only three players — behind Ian Botham and Kapil Dev — to score more than 4,000 runs and take more than 300 wickets in Tests.

With 4,516 runs and 360 wickets in his 112 Tests, the former Black Caps skipper has set himself the career goal of becoming only the second Test player after Kapil to take 400 wickets and score 4,000 runs.

That dream is now in doubt although Vettori has recently said nothing about his intentions.

Left-handed batsman Jesse Ryder and seam-bowling all rounder Doug Bracewell were omitted after being dropped from the squad for the second Test against India in February after a late-night drinking session.

“Jesse Ryder and Doug Bracewell were not considered ... as they are yet to satisfy the selectors that they have their off-field issues under control,” read the statement.

But Opener Peter Fulton has been retained, although he made only 75 runs in his last seven test innings with an average of only 26.83.

New Zealand had a successful summer with a 2-0 victory over West Indies in a three-match series which concluded in December before a 1-0 series win over India, also at home.

The series against West Indies starts with the first Test in Kingston, Jamaica on June 8 before further matches in Port-of-Spain (Trinidad) and Providence (Guyana).

“While we gained a convincing 2-0 Test series victory against the West Indies in December they’ll be a totally different kettle of fish in their conditions,” Hesson added. “And they’ll be driven to perform well in the first match which will be Chris Gayle’s 100th Test.”

Squad:

Brendon McCullum (captain), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Mark Craig, Peter Fulton, Tom Latham, James Neesham, Luke Ronchi, Hamish Rutherford, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, B.J. Watling, Kane Williamson.—Agencies