***Official** Sri Lanka in New Zealand

[NZTailender]

For the first test my team would look like this.

1. Jamie How
2. Craig Cumming
3. Matthew Sinclair
4. Stephen Fleming
5. Nathan Astle
6. Jacob Oram
7. Brendon McCullum
8. James Franklin
9. Daniel Vettori
10. Shane Bond
11. Michael Mason

I would've liked to see another batsman in the mix because I think 4 bowlers with Oram and Astle is about enough, with Cumming and How turning their arms over for their provinces we could've done with another batsman and in that regard Fulton and Marshall are unlucky. I also noticed that Mark Gillespie isn't in the squad which is stupid, he's been in good form like Mason and both of them have been performing alot better than Chris Martin.

Why would Fleming be at 4 when he averages more at 3?

I'd have the same team btw (except Fleming and Sinclair swapped)

 

[_Ed_]

WU Tharanga 108, ST Jayasuriya 85

Worrying.

 

[Perm]

Against an Otago attack deprived of their two best bowlers? Not really that worrying. I couldn't decide what order Sinclair and Fleming would be in so I just put them like that.

 

[Bahnz]

Sigh... I have to say I'm disappointed but not terribly surprised by the squad picked for the first test. Here you have the perfect opportunity to experiment with the test side before the next 12 months of one day cricket, and Bracewell chooses a predictably conservative squad.

I reckon McCullum should've been given a go as an opener. He's been doing relatively well for Canterbury and Glamorgan in the role, and won't be as badly missed in the lower order, as he will be in one day cricket. It also would free up a spot for our badly congested middle-order.

It's a bit harsh on Marshall given he just hit 150 for ND and helped set up an incredible win for them. He's completely lost it in one dayers, but the test arena would be the perfect opportunity to get a bit of confidence back at international level, with scoring rate pressures not an issue in the longer form of the game. Sinclair has been performing well domestically for a long time, so he probably deserves a chance, but to me he just seems like a player who's been tried a lot in the pass, with relatively limited success. Still we'll see.

Again no Ryder, despite having averaged in the high forties for 4 years now. Fitness be damned, he should be in the test side by now.

Fulton is no big loss. He looks hopelessly out of his depth at international level, and really needs to sort out a lot of technical issues.

O'Brien and Mason are both wastes of selection spots. Dinky medium pacers who'll never trouble talented batting line-ups on anything but the greenest of New Zealand pitches. Have we learnt nothing from when Australia toured in 2005? Still they won't be playing unless Bond gets injured, so it doesn't really matter.

Cumming is another player who I think is really going to struggle. He's just never really seemed all that likely to succeed at international level, in either form of the game. Hope he proves me wrong, because we badly need someone to fill the gap that Richardson left when he retired, but I just can't see it. Its difficult to predict how How will perform, but I wouldn't be too surprised if he fails completely.

My prefered top six would look something like

McCullum
? (Papps/Cumming/How/McIntosh/Bell/Jones...)
Marshall
Fleming
Ryder
Astle

 

[Perm]

Cumming had played 5 matches an averaged 26.00 which is pretty good considering 3 of those matches were against Australia. Give him a decent run, he never got a fair chance.

 

[Natman20]

I am suprised to see O'brian. I would have put Jeetan Patel in instead. I completely agree with Matthew sinclairs selection, I would see him as more of a consistent performer than that of Vincent although I would have liked to see Vincent in there instead of Cumming who I dont think is really that great domestically to be even considered for internationals. I dont like How and also think he will prove to be a very inconsistent performer and would like to see Mcintosh instead if his current form can carry throughout the domestic season. Its the only couple of tests we'll see in a while so good on the selectors for selecting players on current form. Would the results of tests matter to the majority of New Zealand? I don't think so. Everyone deserves opportunities and I think Marshall probably just needed 1 or 2 more innings before he would finally fire going on his county form and the 150 he hit yesterday.

Otago really are quite weak in the bowling department so i'm not suprised the Sri Lankans are capitalising on that. I wouldn't take this game into consideration when thinking how competitive the international games will be.

I would like to see Bond only play one test and sit out the other to prepare for ODIs as the most important thing for New Zealand is the world cup next year.

 

[Perm]

Bond has publicly stated on a couple of occasions that he would rather play 1 test than 10 ODI's which is the right attitude but I'm not sure whether his body can handle it especially with the Sri Lankan batting lineup consisting of some very classy players in Jayasuriya, Sangakarra and Jayawardene. Martin Sneddon has went on record saying that after the World Cup next year there will be an increase in test matches, I'm not sure what the FTP says about this but hopefully Sneddon can take some action and get NZ some more test cricket.

Anyway why is Jayasuriya still playing tests for Sri Lanka? Didn't he retire before the tour to England and then received the SOS call halfway through and decided to make himself available for that one tour?

 

[Fiery]

I thought we had already established that Ian O'Brien was ordinary the last time we picked him. Hope he's improved considerably. Same could be said for Craig Cumming

 

[NZTailender]

He averages 98 at test level and about 30 with the ball this year. How they picked him over Gillespie...ugh...I don't know.

 

[Fiery]

And he looks like Worzel Gummidge

 

[_Ed_]

Same could be said for Craig Cumming

It could, although I thought he showed glimpses of potential in tests, particularly with a half-century against Australia, and was perhaps discarded a bit too quickly. He is at least a player capable of opening the batting - a rare commodity in NZ at the moment.

 

[Matt52]

It seems strange that Gillespie is gone, normally you would give a guy a game to see what he was like before you drop him. I was a bit worried when Bracewell was given the coach's job a few years ago, ,.......he just didnt seem that bright, too confrontational( those outbursts in Australia were just embarrassing) , I thought he would bring bolder selections though. In fact its gone the other way, he has been one of the more conservative coaches in terms of selections.

We need to Axe Bracewell in favour of John Wright.

 

[Fiery]

It could, although I thought he showed glimpses of potential in tests, particularly with a half-century against Australia, and was perhaps discarded a bit too quickly. He is at least a player capable of opening the batting - a rare commodity in NZ at the moment.

Hi Ed. Yes, we haven't exactly got an embarassment of riches at the moment in that department. Hope he does well but he's no spring chicken and I thought they might have a look at Tim McIntosh who has being going well

 

[Fiery]

It seems strange that Gillespie is gone, normally you would give a guy a game to see what he was like before you drop him. I was a bit worried when Bracewell was given the coach's job a few years ago, ,.......he just didnt seem that bright, too confrontational( those outbursts in Australia were just embarrassing) , I thought he would bring bolder selections though. In fact its gone the other way, he has been one of the more conservative coaches in terms of selections.

We need to Axe Bracewell in favour of John Wright.

Braces is a bit pig-headed. Would love to see Wrighty in the job too

 

[chaminda_00]

Loving the Kiwi selectors and their choice to pick O'Brien, Sinclair and Cummings. Thanks a lot guys.

 

[Retox]

Loving the Kiwi selectors and their choice to pick O'Brien, Sinclair and Cummings. Thanks a lot guys.

I doubt O'Brien will play over Mason/Martin

I think it's really poor going back to Sinclair.

 

[JASON]

Based on the only practice match before the Test at Jade on Thursday , I would pick -

Sanath J
Tharanga
Mahela
Sangakkara
Dilshan
Chamara Silva or Kapugedera a toss up between the two.
Maharoof
Vaas
Malinga
Dilhara
Murali

I personally think it might be a bit dangerous to go one bowler short with 7 batsman ie Both Chamara and Kapugedera in place of Dilhara.

 

[_Ed_]

I think it's really poor going back to Sinclair.

I agree. I can think of plenty of people I'd choose before him - Ryder, Vincent and Taylor spring to mind. I think Fulton deserves more of a go in the middle order in tests too so I'd much rather have him in there than Sinclair. Even Hamish Marshall!

 

[Perm]

When was the last time Vincent scored runs? I know Ryder and Taylor have been doing it for a little while but Taylor is more suited to the ODI games and Ryder needs another year I think to work on his fitness, then he will take over from Scott Styris as a middle order batsman who bowls some medium pace. Marshall is unlucky really, sure he's not a very good ODI player but he deserved a go in test's ahead of Astle I feel.

Fulton was also deserving, he averages 45 in the State Championship which is a pretty big deal and all this talk of him "not knowing where his off stump is" doesn't really give him a chance to prove himself. He has some decent scores for the Black Caps and should be given more of a run. He's not a test opener either.

 

[_Ed_]

When was the last time Vincent scored runs?

Probably more recently than the last time Astle did.