Gavin Larsen, New Zealand's chief selector, is hopeful that left-arm fast bowler Trent Boult will play for the Blackcaps in the 2023 Men's ODI World Cup in India, which will be held later this year.
Boult, 33, chose to leave New Zealand Cricket last year to pursue overseas opportunities. Boult is currently playing for MI Emirates in the ongoing ILT20 in the UAE after playing for the Melbourne Stars in the Big Bash League (BBL).
Though Boult has previously expressed his desire to play in the 2023 ODI World Cup in India, his participation in the global showpiece event has yet to be confirmed.
"The door is wide open. Trent and Gary (Stead, head coach) communicate frequently. We all know Boulty's pedigree, his experience, and what a fantastic match-winner he is and has been for us over the years "Larsen stated on the SENZ Mornings radio show.
With his ability to move the ball both ways and be one-half of the new-ball pair with right-arm pacer Tim Southee, Boult is regarded as one of the best bowlers to have represented New Zealand in all formats of the game. Boult has 187 wickets in 99 ODIs, averaging 23.97 and a strike rate of 4.93.
"We want him to be involved, we'd love for him to be involved, and we completely understand his situation, so we'll keep working with him. We have a World Cup at the end of the year, and I'm hoping that if the stars align, we'll have a certain Trent Boult opening the bowling for us "Larsen added.
In the absence of Boult and Southee, an inexperienced New Zealand fast-bowling attack struggled in the recently concluded white-ball matches in India, falling 3-0 in the ODI series and 2-1 in the T20I series. New Zealand finished runners-up in both the 2015 and 2019 Men's ODI World Cups and would love to go one better in 2023.