Durham’s Ollie Robinson called up to England’s tour of New Zealand

Chris

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Durham's Ollie Robinson called up to England's tour of New Zealand

Uncapped Durham wicketkeeper Ollie Robinson has been named in England's squad for the tour of New Zealand following an injury to Jordan Cox.

Robinson, 25, will arrive on Saturday and could make his debut in the second Test in Wellington next week.

Cox, who was due to make his own debut in the first Test in Christchurch on Thursday, suffered a broken thumb while hitting the nets during England's warm-up game in Queenstown at the weekend.

As a result, Ollie Pope is behind the stumps for the first Test, while 21-year-old Jacob Bethell makes his debut, batting at number three.

The Essex cox would have been given his chance as a replacement for regular goalkeeper Jamie Smith, who is missing the tour due to paternity leave.

But England decided against adding another specialist goalkeeper to their squad, resulting in Pope being left out for the fourth time in a Test and Bethell being given a berth.

Like Cox, Robinson started his career at Kent but moved north for the 2023 season to get more opportunities behind the stumps. He has since averaged 53 in first-class cricket for Durham, where he is team-mate of England captain Ben Stokes.

He previously toured Australia, India and Sri Lanka with the England Lions.

After a delay in renewing his passport, Robinson begins his journey. As he arrives in Christchurch on the third day of the first Test, he has almost a week to acclimatise before the second Test begins on Friday.

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