Martin Guptill has been a fixture at the top of the order for well over a decade and delivered some of the greatest white ball innings in Kiwi cricket history
But his international career is in serious doubt after he was left out of the Blackcaps T20 and ODI squads to face India this month.
Selectors have instead gone with Finn Allen, with an eye towards next year's World Cup in India.
Head coach Gary Stead had a tough call to make - relegating one of our great limited overs batters to domestic duty.
"Look, it was a tough conversation," he said. "He took it really well, he was obviously upset and still is upset, but that's to be expected."
Guptill has averaged just under 34 in ODIs this year, but managed only eight runs in his last two outings against Australia and didn't play a single game during this month's Twenty20 World Cup.
"It's sad because it's been a great career and he pretty much transformed the game of one-day cricket," former Blackcaps coach John Bracewell said.
It's a clear change of direction before next year's World Cup, with 23-year-old Allen now getting his chance to cement the opening spot against India, starting Friday at Wellington.
"We just felt that it's a call we needed to make right now," Stead said.
And despite Guptill being a proven match-winner in the past, it's a call Bracewell agrees with.
"I think that Finn Allen has to have a decent run going into the next World Cup, because he has got those same attributes," he said.
Guptill isn't the only veteran missing from the squad. Trent Boult's decision to opt out of his centralised contract with NZ Cricket sees him miss out.
"Is it the end of Trent Boult? Well no, not necessarily," Stead said. "And the same boat as Martin Guptill with this, they're still available for selection."
With a World Cup less than 12 months away, both will be waiting in the wings for now.
