The Peninsula Times - New Zealand pick Nicholls to replace Williamson in second Test

Williamson brought the curtain down on his illustrious international career after New Zealand's first Test defeat at Lord's earlier in June.

Black Caps captain Tom Latham confirmed Nicholls has been chosen ahead of Will Young for the daunting task of filling the void left by Williamson, who is New Zealand's all-time leading run scorer across all formats.

Nicholls, 34, made the last of his 58 Test appearances against Zimbabwe 11 months ago.

"It's a really exciting opportunity for him to come back into the side in a role, at three, that he's been doing for Canterbury at home," Latham told reporters on Tuesday.

"I think the good thing with Henry is he's always been able to adapt to situations. He's pretty much batted from the top to the middle throughout his international career, and he'll do whatever is required for the team."

Williamson's decision to step away in the middle of the series is a huge blow to New Zealand after their 115-run thrashing at Lord's.

But Latham insisted there was no ill-will among the squad towards the 35-year-old.

"For him to acknowledge that he's not quite right, or that he can't necessarily give 100 per cent, is testament to the player that he is, but also the person that he is as well," Latham said.

"We're obviously gutted not to have him, but we also acknowledge what he's done for this group over a long period of time.

"We're certainly behind him and we'll wish him all the best for what the next chapter holds."

Latham confirmed that opener Devon Conway was "good to go" after jetting home between Tests to attend the birth of his second child.

Matt Henry, who was reduced to a peripheral role at Lord's due to back spasms, joined his team-mates at Tuesday's net session in a bid to prove his fitness.

(T.Byrne--TPT)