Stoinis to miss final New Zealand ODI with side strain

Marcus Stoinis has been ruled out of the last ODI against New Zealand, and there will be no final outing for the prolific David-Warner-Aaron Finch opening combination after Warner was released from Australia's squad to manage his workload.

Stoinis will miss the final game in the Chappell-Hadlee series with a low-level side strain. He will return to Perth to try and recover in time for the brief T20I tour of India, with the contingent leaving late next week. But side strains can be problematic to overcome in a short time frame.

Pace bowler Nathan Ellis, who has played three ODIs, has been called into the squad for the last game in Cairns on Sunday.

Warner's release from the squad means that Finch will have a different opening partner for his final ODI. The pair will finish as Australia's fourth-most prolific, with 3788 runs including 12 century stands.

Marnus Labuschagne could be an option to go in alongside Finch. Josh Inglis, who replaced Marsh, is the spare batter in the squad, while Cameron Green may be available again after missing the second match following the cramps he suffered in the first game.

Stoinis is the second injury Australia have suffered to one of their allrounders over the last couple of weeks, with Mitchell Marsh heading home after the first match against Zimbabwe to nurse a minor ankle injury, although there were indications that he would be available for the India tour.

In the second ODI on Thursday, Stoinis removed James Neesham but was then off the field when the victory was secured.

While much of the focus has been on Finch's form struggles, Stoinis' returns have also been underwhelming. Since the start of the 2019 World Cup, he has made 308 runs in 19 ODI innings at 17.11.

Both Stoinis and Marsh were key parts of Australia's T20 World Cup success last year. Marsh cemented himself as the team's No. 3 - despite missing the defeat against England - and Stoinis became a middle-order finisher alongside Matthew Wade. The pair also provides handy pace-bowling options. However, heading into this year's tournament, there is the question of how Australia can fit Tim David into their side.