Former New Zealand captain Ross Taylor has lambasted the Black Caps selectors, saying Neil Wagner's retirement was "forced" and the Australian batters would be "sleeping easy" knowing he was no longer in the team.
Wagner shocked fans and even the opposition by announcing his retirement in an emotional press conference on the eve of the first Test against Australia in Wellington last week, putting an end to a storied 64-Test career.
Australia went on to comfortably win the first Test, with the New Zealand bowlers coming under criticism for a poor bowling performance in the first innings that included a record 10th wicket partnership for Australia.
Speaking on ESPN's Around the Wicket ahead of the second Test, Taylor said he believed Wagner's retirement was "forced".
"There's no sugar coating it, I think it's a forced retirement," Taylor said, adding New Zealand were missing a trick by not keeping him in the side.
"It's not just his experience and the way he goes about it, but the opposition - Cummins talked about the plans they had for him - experience plays a big part."
Former Australian captain Aaron Finch and ex-teammate Callum Ferguson were also on the show, and both were stunned to not see Wagner line up for the Black Caps.
"I couldn't believe Neil Wagner wasn't in the XI," Finch said. "I just genuinely thought he must've been out through a niggle, because the success that he's had against Australia, particularly Steve Smith over a period of time, you can guarantee that the last wicket partnership wouldn't have happened if Wagner was there because he would've intimidated Josh Hazlewood at least and might've stopped Cameron Green from scoring as well."
Ferguson agreed, adding Green was susceptible to the short ball.
"It's a big miss for New Zealand not having him there."
Weighing in on the back of their comments, Taylor said Wagner wouldn't have let that last-wicket partnership go on the way it did.
"If he comes around the wicket to Hazlewood, he might've got him away for a couple of boundaries or even a six, but I think for the prolonged time he would've attacked him for I don't think they would've got a 100-run partnership."
While Wagner's official retirement comes after the conclusion of this series, the Black Caps selectors had already made clear he wouldn't be a part of the playing XI, even with the injury suffered by Will O'Rourke. Wellington's Ben Sears has been called up as a replacement.
"To see that [Wagner] isn't selected, they're going with Sears - who I do like and I think you do need to plan for the future - but in a one-off Test against Australia in a must-win situation I wouldn't be looking much further than Neil Wagner and I'm sure the Australian batters are sleeping easy [knowing] that's he not in the side."
The second Test between Australia and New Zealand begins at Christchurch's Hagley Oval on Friday.
Follow the Black Caps during New Zealand's summer of cricket on TVNZ+
SHARE ME