Chris Harris

[Craig]

That's if NZ even go. If Ryder is selected, he will play, I can almost assure you of that.

New Zealand and the West Indies are the only two countries who pick players oout of the blue, besuides Pakistan, Bangladesh.

I mean I blieve Malcolm Marshall was picked after one FC game and I think he picked up 6 wickets in that one, Jerome Taylor, Dave Bernard, Fidel Edwards, Lawson, Baugh etc. Even Alf Valentine and Sonny Ramdhin were picked without playing a FC match.

For NZ it was Bond, Vettori, Butler, McCullum and possibily Ryder have been picked out of the blue. To date only Bond and Vettori have been a success.

 

[iamdavid]

I guess Cairns will captain without Flemming or McMillan??

 

[Tim]

There is absolutely no way NZ will take 2 teenagers to Pakistan when there are already security threats.
Im not sure Bracewell would back 2 extremely new players to go off to Pakistan..I'd say he'll be wanting to look at them once domestic & international cricket gets under way back here in NZ.

The 4 players will be: Walker, Adams, Mason & Sinclair.

 

[Tim]

Ryder has been very very good for the Academy..I think everytime he's batted he's pretty much scored a 50.

But I don't think Pakistan is the right place for him to make a debut, same with Taylor.
Ryder has a poor OD average, but if you have seen him bat you'll know that this season both his OD & FC averages are going to go up alot.

 

[Tim]

I don't think i'll bother waiting up to see that NZ team play...we'll lose 5-0 for sure.

NZ have alot of sorting out to do with the batting, there are about 3 or 4 freeloaders in that team & too many bowling or batting all-rounders.

 

[Alieaz]

'Harry'

Chris Harris was & is one of the great exponents of the ODI, but it WILL soon be time for him to step aside - perhaps not right now, but SOON.

He is still a fine cricketer, with the same head on his shoulders. And in life after international cricket he would, if he chooses, still be a formidable force in domestic cricket for Canterbury.

I hope he is able to decide his fate gracefully, rather than being dropped. He deserves to be remembered for his wonderful cricketing abilities alone.

As far as New Zealand's best bowler goes: Shane Bond for sure. But, for how long? He's started his international career in his late 20's; at an age many fast bowlers are reaching their prime and heading the other way down the proverbial hill. I hope he is the exception to this theory and not the norm. He is a genuine strike bowler who can match most of the best fast bowlers in world cricket for pace, stamina, control and ingenuity.

I think in 5 years time, we might just be talking about young Ian Butler. Whilst he still has some issues regarding his action (that currently makes him a candidate for early retirement via lower back injury), he is a genuine pace prospect who has responded well to the pressure-cooker enviroment of international level cricket.

 

[Richard]

Why this insistence on pretence regarding Butler? Why does practically every Kiwi in existence with some regard for cricket say he's done well? HE HASN'T! He's been hammered all over the park almost every time he's played international cricket.
Why can't Matthew Walker or Michael Mason be given a Test chance, and why the hell has Walker NEVER PLAYED AN ODI? His record is phenominal.

 

[anzac]

probably for the same reasons that other players have yet to make their international debuts - the selectors only seem to want to introduce new players in either form of the game if they are a bowler who can bat a bit!!!!!

you just need to look at the lack of batting depth esp in ODIs.....

what bunch of lunatics would ever select a squad that has only 1 specialist batsman for a game where the idea is to score more runs than your opponent, especially when undertaking a 5 match series?????? :duh: :duh: :duh:

Here is a situation where the selectors hand has been forced to replace batsmen by either introducing new blood or recalling old hands like Horne, simply because they only took a bare minimum of 5 batsmen in the squad to start with. Do they do that - no they'd rather select further bowlers and 'allrounders'!!!

Why take Mason & Adams when you already have 6 seam bowlers in the squad??? If any of the others are injured then send them home, because to my mind I can't see another 2 seamers making a great deal of difference to the team prospects if you have taken your best bowling options in the first place!!!!

Furthermore 2 of the replacements would be debutants (if selected) and yet neither are specialist batsmen, so why not take proper batsmen instead when they are more likely to be required????? It's not as if the 'allrounders' & old hands remaining in the squad are showing any form with the bat (apart from Oram perhaps).

I'd rather they selected the Acadamy side or not go at all rather than play this squad as the NZ ODI team!!!

It's a farce & national disgrace & makes a mockery of International sport (to say nothing of being disrespectful to the Pakistan team & public). I'm hoping that there would be some kind of public outrage in NZ and the selectors get the boot. I'd like for the ICC to step in and have stern words with the NZCC as the implications are that NZ has no domestic batting depth capable of playing ODI cricket. It makes me ashamed of my heritage for them to suggest that this squad is the best available representation of my place of birth.

I wouldn't be surprised if the PCB launched another grievance re the squad as the public would see it for the farce it is and stay away in droves - I'd certainly not pay good money to watch the team selected from that squad on current form. It would then serve the NZCC right if they had to undertake the Tour, got humiliated on the pitch (although I'd feel sorry for the players), and then had to pay up compensation to the PCB anyway!!!!!


:!( :!( :!( :!(

 

[marc71178]

and why the hell has Walker NEVER PLAYED AN ODI? His record is phenominal.

Perhaps he's only ever taken wickets with Long Hops?

 

[marc71178]

I wouldn't be surprised if the PCB launched another grievance re the squad as the public would see it for the farce it is

They wouldn't have a leg to stand on in that regard after some of their squad selections!

 

[Richard]

Perhaps he's only ever taken wickets with Long Hops?

If so:
One, who cares? Wickets aren't what matters and what's so phenominal isn't the average, it's the economy-rate.
Two, who cares? Selection, as I've said, can't be done on "you didn't deserve that so we're going to treat it as it should have been". Selection doesn't work like that.
Three, anyway, is it really likely that someone will have had 55 matches of taking wickets with Long-Hops? Or even 55 of getting wickets mostly with bad deliveries? No.

 

[Tim]

Richard, Walker is another bowler who can bat & the NZ selectors will believe that he can bat anywhere from 5 to 9 in the NZ ODI team.

 

[iamdavid]

Ryder has a poor OD average, but if you have seen him bat you'll know that this season both his OD & FC averages are going to go up alot.

His first class average is 60:P

 

[Craig]

Richard, Walker is another bowler who can bat & the NZ selectors will believe that he can bat anywhere from 5 to 9 in the NZ ODI team.

Still doesnt explain why he hasnt played a ODI by now?

Marc, if Walker got his wickets of long hops, I would very much doubt his econ would be as it is.

 

[Tim]

Ryder was very good in all FC matches he played for C.D last season..I don't think he failed once, he usually got into the 30's & 40's...but only managed to score one 50 & one 100.

And so far for the NZ Academy he has only failed once in about 8 innings, the rest of the time he has gone past 50.

Craig -> But look at the OD averages of the other players that have been picked ahead of Walker.

Andre Adams - 24.82
Kyle Mills - 24.58
Jacob Oram - 31.87

Now, Oram does have quite a high OD average but at the time he was picked in 2000...NZ had considerably less amount of players with good bowling averages & Walker was really only starting out his career originally with Central Districts.

Basically Adams & Mills were picked ahead of Walker because they showed ability with the bat...Walker definately improved his batting last season though.

 

[Craig]

So would you expect him to get picked for NZ anytime soon?

 

[Tim]

Yeah well perhaps as soon as the Pakistan series next week.
But I can't see him holding a place down unless he plays out of his skin.

The problem for NZ is that they have a whole load of players that perform well in one game & then flop the next..it makes it difficult to drop a player because as soon as they're under pressure they'll produce something that will keep them in the team for another 3 matches & it goes on & on.

I don't think the NZ bowlers are to blame, they seem to play well most of the time..its the batting that lets us down time & time again.
NZ need to pull the plug on Nevin, Harris & Vincent I think..they've had more than enough opportunities to play well & never fronted.
Fleming as an opener also needs to be addressed because he only seems to pull off every 1 in 4 or 5 games.

 

[Tim]

Here is a concerning set of statistics showing a few of NZ's best upcoming batting talent in both OD & FC...some of the FC averages are excellent, but OD averages are extremely poor.

Peter Fulton - FC - 45.52, OD - 18.00
Rob Nicol - FC - 46.12, OD - 16.90
Tim McIntosh - FC - 39.57, OD - 17.91
Jesse Ryder - FC - 60.83, OD - 24.33
Neil Broom - FC - 39.50, OD - N/A
Ross Taylor - FC - 25.50, OD - 11

Now to be fair on those players...all of them have played less than 15 FC matches & OD matches except McIntosh (in FC matches)...so those averages could easily change for better or for worse.
But the trend is the worry, pretty much all of them have poor OD averages.
The FC averages are very good, but if NZ want to be good in ODI's also then those stats are concerning.

 

[Craig]

Obviously I want Astle to open, regardless of that stupid "stat" they use, who would you want opening with him?

Fleming is probably better off at 4.

 

[Tim]

The problem for Fleming though, is that he's been tried pretty much from 1-4 & generally failed in all of those positions and anything lower than 4 is considered to be a bad idea because he can't accelerate his innings fast enough.

I'd also like to see Fleming bat at 4.
Ryder & McCullum would be a good opening partnership should it happen in the future.