***Official*** New Zealand in Bangladesh & Sri Lanka 2013

[Webcomics]

The problem isn't even the performance. I've never seen the Kiwis look so demotivated. They really need to figure out a way to regain their confidence.

 

[banquetbear]

I think the compromise of split captaincy that Hesson ended up offering Ross should have been accepted and we would have had a couple more victories in the test arena over the past year. I think normally Ross would have accepted but he knew he just couldn't work with Hesson on a daily basis.

...I'm sorry but this is wrong. You only have Hesson's word that the compromise was actually offered. Ross couldn't have accepted something that never took place. Once they got back to the country they pretended they made the offer of a spit captaincy: but it never was really on the table.

 

[_Ed_]

You have to put the inexplicable Ellis recall aside too, surely?

The last thing a squad with Anderson, Neesham and Munro in it needed as a seam bowling allrounder (see: bits and pieces player) who wouldn't be amongst the top twenty batsman or top fifteen bowlers in the country. There have been some circumstances throughout Ellis's career where his selection wasn't - or wouldn't have been - offensive. This is not one of those circumstances.

Oops, yes, that too - such a useless selection that I didn't even comprehend it while reading the article.

 

[Days of Grace]

That's the worst looking squad I have seen from New Zealand in quite some time. The New Zealand summer season can't come soon enough.

 

[RxGM]

This upcoming tour of SL reminds me of the 03 **** tour where all the senior players did not want to travel, being the last time that we selected a genuine B team.

That side even with Richard Jones and Tama Canning would have still given this side a hidding

 

[Hurricane]

Well done Bangladesh. They did well not to collapse in the first game, and did well to finish at 247 here.

re: selections: can we bring back the pie chart please? Nothing can be worse than picking batsmen with some of the worst list A records in domestic cricket to open the ****ing innings.

its a brave man to back a player when he is playing like crap. But hamish rutherford will go on to average over 30 in list A cricket and ODIs. He is made for the game. I can't understand why he doesn't make runs when he can bat at such a high strike rate in FC.

 

[wellAlbidarned]

It's because he gets his eye in pretty exclusively with boundaries through the off-side which is always empty in the long format for at least ten overs. After that he opens up his scoring to other areas, but obviously in one-dayers there isn't that same window of opportunity so he tends to strike out.

 

[Hurricane]

It's because he gets his eye in pretty exclusively with boundaries through the off-side which is always empty in the long format for at least ten overs. After that he opens up his scoring to other areas, but obviously in one-dayers there isn't that same window of opportunity so he tends to strike out.

I would accept that however he's an average T20 player and has done ok in T20is

 

[wellAlbidarned]

He's alright in t20s because he's got an excellent eye and can whack the ball all over when there's no pressure to build and innings and be sensible.

 

[Prince EWS]

He's alright in t20s because he's got an excellent eye and can whack the ball all over when there's no pressure to build and innings and be sensible.

Yeah exactly. Rutherford wouldn't be the first example of a boundary-reliant player who succeeded in being able to go full tilt in T20 and sweating on the loose ball with attacking fields in First Class cricket to build an innings but struggled to find a balance of the two in the middle format. Matt Prior immediately springs to mind, as does Dave Warner to an extent.

One day cricket has always been very much about minimising dot balls and finding a way to build a significant innings at a good rate (often largely through singles), while Test cricket is about playing each ball on its merits, and T20 cricket is about maximising boundary balls. Formats of cricket are not a sliding scale but in fact all have their own specific demands.

That's not to say Rutherford won't develop a one day game as well eventually - he's still relatively young and has the natural ability to develop those skills. He clearly hasn't yet though and it's certainly not a matter of just selecting him over and over until what he's already doing suddenly works for him; he needs to change and develop his game.

 

[BeeGee]

Yeah exactly. Rutherford wouldn't be the first example of a boundary-reliant player who succeeded in being able to go full tilt in T20 and sweating on the loose ball with attacking fields in First Class cricket to build an innings but struggled to find a balance of the two in the middle format. Matt Prior immediately springs to mind, as does Dave Warner to an extent.

One day cricket has always been very much about minimising dot balls and finding a way to build a significant innings at a good rate (often largely through singles), while Test cricket is about playing each ball on its merits, and T20 cricket is about maximising boundary balls. Formats of cricket are not a sliding scale but in fact all have their own specific demands.

That's not to say Rutherford won't develop a one day game as well eventually - he's still relatively young and has the natural ability to develop those skills. He clearly hasn't yet though and it's certainly not a matter of just selecting him over and over until what he's already doing suddenly works for him; he needs to change and develop his game.

Mate, you seriously need to be the next coach of the NZ cricket team. Apply now, please.

Befriend McCullum and hire Fleming as your manager and you should be a shoe in.

 

[straw man]

Canterbury pair Rob Nicol and Andrew Ellis have also been summoned for the three ODIs and two T20 internationals later this month, replacing Williamson and Ian Butler who was forced out with a back injury.

That is hilariously bad. Sri Lanka are going to absolutely murder us in those three odis.

All part of the plan to not peak too early before the next world cup of course

 

[Meridio]

You know, I genuinely believe that we at CW could act as selectors better than our actual selectors do. I just cannot fathom what Ellis and Nicol have done to deserve being selected. And I get the feeling Neil Broom's been picked on the basis of his T20 century for Otago a month ago.

I'm struggling to think of a sport in NZ as badly run/managed/coached as NZ cricket. It's a joke.

 

[Kippax]

Batsmen apparently ahead of Watling in the ODI pecking order:

Taylor
McCullum
Williamson
Guptill
Anderson
Elliott
Rutherford
Devcich
Latham
Neesham
Ronchi
and we can assume Ryder

And apparently Rob Nicol!

I missed Munro off that list too.

Broom's been picked to play the 3rd ODI.

 

[Prince EWS]

Taylor
McCullum
Williamson
Guptill
Anderson
Elliott
Rutherford
Devcich
Latham
Neesham
Munro
Ronchi
Broom
and we can assume Ryder

I'm starting to think there has to be more to it. Do they want him to focus on his Test batting and keeping without worrying about his OD game for now? Are they resting him in the same way that they're resting McCullum and Taylor in Sri Lanka? Have they just forgotten he's not already in the squad?

 

[Mike5181]

Yeah, they must have told him to concentrate on establishing himself at test level first. If that's the case, I wouldn't be that annoyed by it. However, shouldn't that apply to Rutherford even more so? He's yet to do much at all in domestic OD, let alone ODIs, and he's in there for whatever reason. No consistency from the selectors.

 

[Kippax]

I'm starting to think there has to be more to it. Do they want him to focus on his Test batting and keeping without worrying about his OD game for now? Are they resting him in the same way that they're resting McCullum and Taylor in Sri Lanka? Have they just forgotten he's not already in the squad?

You don't think Hesson's simply decided there's not enough back-foot game in Watling, and he doesn't fit his proposed World Cup blueprint very well at all? Just laughably early for WC blueprints?

The crux to a Hesson side doing well on our pitches and grounds would clearly be all-rounders all day long, no real traditional middle overs period, bullish temperaments and back-foot play. "The Munro-Anderson thesis".

Not that Rutherford can really play a pull shot I suppose, but I've noticed him starting to try.

 

[Immenso]

Been on holiday, just saw first videos highlights of the ODIS. Mills has shortened his runup? I don't like it, realise it has worked well for guys like Hadlee, Andre Adams, jimmy Anderson, Damien Fleming etc. But Mills just looks jerky at the crease, no rhythm, (and 2 no balls).

I'm hoping it's a "**** this is hot and humid" run-up, not a permanent shift.

BTW. Free hits for no-balls. FMD, Is this tiddly winks for 5 years olds? It's bad enough there is 30 meters of grass between the rope and the fence ..... Cricket is definitely lacking in mature decision makers.

 

[Immenso]

Taylor
McCullum
Williamson
Guptill
Anderson
Elliott
Rutherford
Devcich
Latham
Neesham
Munro
Ronchi
Broom
and we can assume Ryder

I'm starting to think there has to be more to it. Do they want him to focus on his Test batting and keeping without worrying about his OD game for now? Are they resting him in the same way that they're resting McCullum and Taylor in Sri Lanka? Have they just forgotten he's not already in the squad?

I think that's it (focusing on his new role in test team), and I don't mind it. But then I'm not too fussed by the ODIs.

I would also be OK with them wanting to try Kitchen, or bring back How - before drafting Watling back as an ODI top 3 option (in a team containing KW).

However, I wouldn't have Nicol, Devcich, Munro, Broom, (top order) Ronchi, or Rutherford near the ODI squad ahead of him.

But .... With Williamson gone, he'd make an ideal almost like for like replacement at 3.

A trivial however .... Having 4 keepers in team would leave them exposed to drongo media focusing on trivialities like why isn't so-and-so keeping. Why is the third best keeper in the team wearing the gloves etc etc

 

[Immenso]

Broom's been picked to play the 3rd ODI.

Can't always (often) tell with you, Kippax.

Are you being sarcastic about front foot pulls?

Who are the guys playing the pull shots in the domestics footage? Just Broom?