WELLINGTON: New Zealand all-rounder Mitc­hell Santner will miss at least the one-off Test agai­nst Ireland later in May and the first Test with England because of a shoul­der injury, New Zealand Cric­ket (NZC) said on Friday.

The Black Caps’ white-ball captain will be out for “at least a month” after hurting his left shoulder while fielding in the Indian Premier League for Mum­bai Indians on April 23.

The 34-year-old returned to New Zealand and will need rest and rehabilitation, forcing him out of the Ireland Test on May 27-30 in Belfast and the first England Test at Lord’s a week later.

His availability for the second and third Tests will be “evaluated at a later date”, NZC said.

The second Test is scheduled to start at The Oval from June 17 and the third at Trent Bridge begins on June 25.

The squad for the Ireland and England Test series will be named in the coming days, NZC said.

Santner led New Zealand to the final of the T20 World Cup in March, where they lost to hosts India by 96 runs.

Published in Dawn, May 2nd, 2026