New Zealand opener Finn Allen has been forced to withdraw from the upcoming T20I tri-series in Zimbabwe due to a foot injury he sustained while playing for San Francisco Unicorns in Major League Cricket. As a result, Allen will also be absent from the MLC playoffs, where the Unicorns are scheduled to face MI New York in the Eliminator on Wednesday.
Injury Timeline and Impact
According to an official statement from New Zealand Cricket (NZC), the full extent of Allen’s recovery will only be clear after he returns home and undergoes specialist assessments. The board plans to announce his replacement for the tri-series soon.
“𝑶𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝑭𝒊𝒏𝒏 𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒊𝒏 𝑵𝒆𝒘 𝒁𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒇𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔, 𝒘𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚,” 𝑵𝒁𝑪 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒅.
Meanwhile, the Unicorns have opted not to name a replacement for Allen, leaving a significant gap in their batting order as they prepare for a crucial knockout clash.
Strong Tournament Showing
Allen’s absence is a setback for the Unicorns, as he was their second-highest run-scorer this season, compiling 333 runs across nine matches. His highlight came in the opening game, where he smashed a record-breaking 151 runs against Washington Freedom in Oakland. His last appearance was during the league stage match against Los Angeles Knight Riders on July 6, where he was dismissed for 4 runs while chasing 244.
New Zealand will arrive in Harare on Thursday, with their first T20I against South Africa scheduled for July 16.
Unicorns Also Lose Romario Shepherd
Adding to their challenges, the Unicorns will also be without Romario Shepherd, who has returned to Guyana to join the Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Global Super League. Shepherd played a pivotal role as an allrounder, collecting eight wickets in five innings and contributing vital runs down the order.
“𝑹𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒐 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒂 𝒌𝒆𝒚 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒖𝒔, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒘𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒍𝒐𝒃𝒂𝒍 𝑺𝒖𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝑳𝒆𝒂𝒈𝒖𝒆,” 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅.
Despite the double blow, the Unicorns will head into the Eliminator with their current squad and will look to their remaining players to step up.
“𝑰𝒕’𝒔 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒘𝒐 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆,” 𝒂 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒅. “𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒅’𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒉.”
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