3 New Zealand players who should be protected during IPL 2019

New Zealand are one of the strongest teams in the world today and are currently at the third spot in the ICC ODI rankings. Led by Kane Williamson, they are very consistent and have improved a lot in the past few years.

In the last edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup, the New Zealand Cricket team shocked the entire world with their dominating performances and made it to the final. However, they lost to arguably the most flawless team throughout the whole tournament, Australia.

New Zealand are definitely one of the teams to watch out for at the 2019 World Cup and for them to have a great tournament, they need to protect some of their players from suffering any potential injury, with only a few months left.

In this article, let us take a look at three New Zealand players who should be protected at the IPL 2019.

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#3 Tim Southee

Tim Southee

The right-arm medium-fast bowler is known for his swing bowling and is currently the vice-captain of the international team. Southee has been one of the mainstays of the New Zealand bowling department for quite a few years. He is known for producing fierce spells along side Trent Boult.

The New Zealander has been very impressive for the national side in the last two World Cups. In the 2011 World Cup, he was the third-highest wicket-taker with 18 wickets in 8 matches at an eye-catching economy rate of 4.31. He shone in 2015 World Cup too and picked up 15 wickets in 9 matches. Southee and Boult ran through the batting lineup and helped the New Zealand team to reach the final.

The 29-year old pacer is expected to play a key role for the New Zealand Cricket team in their pursuit of World Cup in 2019. With conditions expected to suit the fast bowlers, the team cannot take the risk of losing Southee to any potential injury in IPL and should definitely keep an eye on him.

#2 Trent Boult

Trent Boult

Trent Boult is one of the most popular bowlers in world cricket today and is known for his in-swinging yorker that can catch the batsman by surprise. He is known for swinging it both ways and is a nightmare to even the best of the batsmen.

In last year's IPL, he breathed fire and picked up 18 wickets in 14 matches and destroyed the batting lineups. Despite his heroics, the Delhi Daredevils finished at the bottom of the points table and failed to make it to the playoffs.

In the 2015 World Cup, he picked up 22 wickets (tied for most in the edition with Mitchell Starc) in 9 matches and played a key role in New Zealand reaching the final. Boult's talent is definitely required for the New Zealand Cricket team to make any noise in next year's World Cup in England and Wales. Considering it is the ICC Cricket World Cup which we are talking about, Boult should consider the idea of not participating in IPL's twelfth edition.

#1 Kane Williamson

Kane Williamson

This should not even be a surprise. Kane Williamson is one of the best players in the world today and is known for his consistency. He was the leading runner-getter in last year's edition of the IPL and subsequently took home the Orange Cup.

Kane Williamson is the most important player for New Zealand currently and the skipper has recently recovered from a groin injury that kept him away from action for the last ODI of the series against Pakistan.

The New Zealand Cricket team is heavily dependent on him and for them to have any chance of winning the World Cup in 2019, they need everything they can get out of him and therefore, the New Zealand management should look after him during the upcoming IPL season. It will also help the SRH team as it will take some load off Williamson and they can get a look at the youngsters.