Black Caps Squad

[ataraxia]

As long as we play more than 3 bowlers, I'm sweet

 

[Fuller Pilch]

As long as we play more than 3 bowlers, I'm sweet

Nah. Just bring Kane in for Boult and keep the rest the same.

 

[trundler]

Neesham is pointless in the SC. Go with Chapman or Phillips.

 

[The Hutt Rec]

Just give more rest to Williamson

And u simply cannot drop someone like Chapman lol , his firepower is needed at the end of innings and also he can play rescue part if needed

Needham isn't of much use , he will get dropped

And young too if he doesn't perform much in next 2 matches, I know that's harsh on him but ultimately that doesn't matter , he's still in the potential world cup winning squad

My 11 whenever Kane returns

Conway
Rachin
Kane
Mitchell
Latham
Phillips
Chapman
Santner
Ferguson
Henry
Boult

Long impressive batting and 4 proper bowling options with some all-rounders to fill rest

Also rotating bowlers is fine to give rest or play em acc to conditions like sodhi in for Chennai matches.

At first glance this looks light on bowlers, but between Ravindra/Mitchell/Phillips/Chapman we should be able to squeeze out 10. I think this is the team I’d go with.

It’s probably over confidence after the first up win, but our batting line up looks really dynamic. Bowling should get the job done too. Actually think we’re better off than we were in 2019.

 

[King Kane]

I've got no idea how Neesham keeps getting a game for us to be honest.

I can't even remember the last innings of any substance he played for us, he usually just slogs a few and then top edges one and gets caught.

He's not much better than Southee with the bat and he is a lot worse bowler that usually gets carted around the park bowling medium pace pies.

He's one of the weak links in our line up, we need to move past him and find a better all rounder.

 

[Athlai]

Neesham has a kind of world cup aura

 

[Archer6K]

1) Will Young
2) Devon Conway
3) Rachin Ravindra
4) Kane Williamson
5) Daryl Mitchell
6) Tom Latham
7) Glenn Philipps
8) Mitchell Santner
9) Matt Henry
10) Trent Boult
11) Lockie Ferguson/Ish Sodhi

 

[SteveNZ]

I've got no idea how Neesham keeps getting a game for us to be honest.

I can't even remember the last innings of any substance he played for us, he usually just slogs a few and then top edges one and gets caught.

He's not much better than Southee with the bat and he is a lot worse bowler that usually gets carted around the park bowling medium pace pies.

He's one of the weak links in our line up, we need to move past him and find a better all rounder.

It's a fair point.

I found these quotes really interesting in a newsletter I subscribe to, about the period after the World Cup from Jimmy:

“I struggled for a couple of years after that final because I didn’t really feel like the matches we were playing mattered. That’s no disrespect to the opposition or anything but I would be out in the middle going: ‘I don’t really care.’ There’s no context to a lot of matches, there’s no pressure, there’s a lot of, like, whatever games.”

Interesting, for a guy who almost quit a couple of years previous to 2019 and was dropped by Otago, that he didn't care about playing for his country, didn't see context or didn't feel pressure. Seemingly he found context to go and play a bunch of hit and giggle stuff in Canada, Pakistan, wherever else, the context being 'suitably good remuneration for a short period of time and effort'

 

[thundaboult]

At first glance this looks light on bowlers, but between Ravindra/Mitchell/Phillips/Chapman we should be able to squeeze out 10. I think this is the team I’d go with.

It’s probably over confidence after the first up win, but our batting line up looks really dynamic. Bowling should get the job done too. Actually think we’re better off than we were in 2019.

Chapman doesn't bowl anymore does he? Don't think he's bowled in forever and i don't recall he got a single over in the warm ups.

 

[RossTaylorsBox]

It's a fair point.

I found these quotes really interesting in a newsletter I subscribe to, about the period after the World Cup from Jimmy:

“I struggled for a couple of years after that final because I didn’t really feel like the matches we were playing mattered. That’s no disrespect to the opposition or anything but I would be out in the middle going: ‘I don’t really care.’ There’s no context to a lot of matches, there’s no pressure, there’s a lot of, like, whatever games.”

Interesting, for a guy who almost quit a couple of years previous to 2019 and was dropped by Otago, that he didn't care about playing for his country, didn't see context or didn't feel pressure. Seemingly he found context to go and play a bunch of hit and giggle stuff in Canada, Pakistan, wherever else, the context being 'suitably good remuneration for a short period of time and effort'

That's actually a pretty reasonable position to take imo

 

[NZTailender]

It's a fair point.

I found these quotes really interesting in a newsletter I subscribe to, about the period after the World Cup from Jimmy:

“I struggled for a couple of years after that final because I didn’t really feel like the matches we were playing mattered. That’s no disrespect to the opposition or anything but I would be out in the middle going: ‘I don’t really care.’ There’s no context to a lot of matches, there’s no pressure, there’s a lot of, like, whatever games.”

Interesting, for a guy who almost quit a couple of years previous to 2019 and was dropped by Otago, that he didn't care about playing for his country, didn't see context or didn't feel pressure. Seemingly he found context to go and play a bunch of hit and giggle stuff in Canada, Pakistan, wherever else, the context being 'suitably good remuneration for a short period of time and effort'

But is he wrong?

We could crap on about playing for your country and heart on your sleeve stuff but to me this just fuels my suspicion we need less T20Is apart from a world cup and more ODIs, but how do you put something at stake in those series?

 

[straw man]

If anything Neesham is just guilty of being too honest and open there - am sure a lot of other players would think/feel similar things but just not say it.

It's still fine to criticise his output for NZ since his excellent 2019 WC though, as it's been total poo. I'm fine that he's made this squad as the wildcard 15th player given lack of other options (Braceface injured) but he wouldn't make my first choice XI. It would genuinely be a pretty close decision between Neesham and Nathan McCullum's bits and pieces right now, if the latter was ten years younger, which doesn't reflect brilliantly on Neesham. But... there's still a feeling that he just might do something special under pressure at the back end of the tournament, which would make it all worthwhile.

 

[NZTailender]

Neesh was brilliant in that WC final I thought. His death bowling then calm batting was great. But we can't carry him just in case we make the final.

Doesn't help that conditions really don't suit his bowling.

 

[straw man]

Agree don't carry him in the XI all tournament. There could easily be attrition or injuries or loss of form from others that lead to him making the team later though. And if not then I guess things are going well.

 

[The Hutt Rec]

If anything Neesham is just guilty of being too honest and open there - am sure a lot of other players would think/feel similar things but just not say it.

It's still fine to criticise his output for NZ since his excellent 2019 WC though, as it's been total poo. I'm fine that he's made this squad as the wildcard 15th player given lack of other options (Braceface injured) but he wouldn't make my first choice XI. It would genuinely be a pretty close decision between Neesham and Nathan McCullum's bits and pieces right now, if the latter was ten years younger, which doesn't reflect brilliantly on Neesham. But... there's still a feeling that he just might do something special under pressure at the back end of the tournament, which would make it all worthwhile.

I mean I feel exactly the same as him atm. I think it’s the lack of meaningful tours. Back when you had a test series, an odi series and possibly a t20 series, there was time to build a sense of rivalry, get to know the opposition players … lose in one format and you’d be thinking “well if we can take out the Odis then that’s a bit of revenge”.

Now it’s just random series after random series … the limited overs stuff is basically a glorified training run until a World Cup bowls around. I’d be exactly the same in Neesham’s boots, I think!

 

[NZTailender]

Bring back tri series imo

An ideal home summer for me would be:

3 tests vs team A
3 T20Is vs Team A to be carried out in a week
Team A vs B vs Home ODI tri series
3 T20Is vs Team B
3 Tests vs Team B

 

[Fuller Pilch]

I think Neesham is still useful to have there as a possible 3rd seamer to contribute 4-6 overs if Sodhi bowls well to merit selection (and conditions favour him) and Ferguson and Southee both bowl poorly to not merit selection.

If the top 6 is Conway, Ravindra, Williamson, Mitchell, Latham, Phillips & the bottom 4 Santner, Sodhi, Henry, Boult THEN Neesham becomes a better option at 7 than Chapman.

10 (+) overs between Neesham, Ravindra, Phillips, and Mitchell is decent.

He could also play when Henry or Boult are rested with the same team balance.

 

[thierry henry]

I know this forum loves nothing more than to say how meaningless cricket is at any opportunity, but I struggle to understand what Jimmy is talking about in this particular case - after the 2019 World Cup he's had World Cups in 2021, 2022 and 2023. He also doesn't play tests, and doesn't always play JAMseries where we pick B teams - so apart from maybe a handful of games either side of COVID in 2020, he's been playing mostly very context-heavy cricket. If anything, it feels more like he's been absent a lot and then keeps popping up to play in World Cups.

 

[The Hutt Rec]

I know this forum loves nothing more than to say how meaningless cricket is at any opportunity, but I struggle to understand what Jimmy is talking about in this particular case - after the 2019 World Cup he's had World Cups in 2021, 2022 and 2023. He also doesn't play tests, and doesn't always play JAMseries where we pick B teams - so apart from maybe a handful of games either side of COVID in 2020, he's been playing mostly very context-heavy cricket. If anything, it feels more like he's been absent a lot and then keeps popping up to play in World Cups.

My memory is he has played a lot of random series, which has sort of stuck out, because he didn't get offered a contract. And then got selected for everything under the sun.

 

[thierry henry]

My memory is he has played a lot of random series, which has sort of stuck out, because he didn't get offered a contract. And then got selected for everything under the sun.

He only played 14 ODIs in over 4 years which is obviously pretty pitiful (although largely due to the ridiculously low number of ODIs we've played in this WC cycle).

Between the 2019 ODI WC and the 2021 T20 WC he played 14 T20Is in a period of over 2 years. Not exactly a brutal JAM schedule.

12 of his next 29 T20Is were World Cup matches.

He's played 11 T20Is since the last World Cup. I dunno, it seems like a decent distribution to me. And given (a) he doesn't play tests and (b) we hardly play ODIs, aren't random T20s like....the exact and only type of cricket Neesham has signed up to play anyway?