Mark Chapman earns maiden NZC central contract

Mark Chapman has been given his first New Zealand Cricket central contract. The left-handed batter takes the spot of Martin Guptill who decided not to take up a central contract and was released by NZC in November. 

Chapman, 28, has featured in 22 T20Is and five ODIs for New Zealand and was also part of the last two T20 World Cups. 

The Hong Kong-born player has slammed 381 runs in 18 T20I innings at a strike rate of 140.1, while in ODIs, Chapman has 111 runs in five innings.

"We're delighted to have Mark join the central contract list after being there or thereabouts for a while,” said New Zealand head coach Gary Stead.

"He's a fine player and we like the versatility and innovation he brings to his batting. He's a guy with a lot of talent and we see him being a big part of future Black Caps squads."

Chapman is part of New Zealand’s squad that will play three ODIs against India in January.