*Unofficial* New Zealand Black Caps Thread

[Flem274*]

if munro was a gun test or odi player he would be in and getting well looked after. in the end, nzc just don't really care about t20 beyond the dollar signs.

they spam them at us and make sure to field most of the stars during our home season to keep the broadcasting dollars rolling but nzc are an odi focused board and t20s exist to pay for fc cricket and the test team to have a bare minimum schedule.

 

[Mike5181]

I don't mind the non-selection of Munro. He's good enough to be there but we need to support the NZ domestic competitions. If players start to play overseas instead then it hurts the development of all NZ players long-term.

 

[SteveNZ]

You'll be PM one day, Immenso my man. Or maybe you could aim higher.

But totally agree. I am a considerably biased and fervent Munro fan, but I can see why he's not in the NZ team. He's been great over the last 12 months, but not 'you have no option but to pick me' great.

 

[SteveNZ]

if munro was a gun test or odi player he would be in and getting well looked after. in the end, nzc just don't really care about t20 beyond the dollar signs.

they spam them at us and make sure to field most of the stars during our home season to keep the broadcasting dollars rolling but nzc are an odi focused board and t20s exist to pay for fc cricket and the test team to have a bare minimum schedule.

I mean, that's represented in the fact the weighting for T20 in terms of the national contracts is the lowest. If Munro were a gun in another format, he'd probably have got a contract.

Interesting you say we're an ODI focused board, we're really not playing a lot of them recently (T20 World Cup potentially influencing that). Oh but it looks like we're playing Netherlands for 3 this summer? And Ireland next winter?

 

[TheBrand]

So my theory about Bond tying up Southee and Boult's family members to get them bowling the fastest they've ever bowled has another chance to be proven correct at the T20WC.

 

[Immenso]

"He will stay with the team for the T20 matches against India which follow the tournament"

That's also the first info re: any actual confirmed matches/fixtures for the Indian tour.

 

[nzfan]

Will the Pakistan tour happen? Now with what's going on in Afganistan?

 

[Bahnz]

Dunno, could go either way. Pakistan got by fine living alongside the Taliban for 5 years before 9/11 though, so I don't think it's automatically a sign that the risk of terror attacks have shot up.

 

[nzfan]

Dunno, could go either way. Pakistan got by fine living alongside the Taliban for 5 years before 9/11 though, so I don't think it's automatically a sign that the risk of terror attacks have shot up.

I'm not aware of the demographics of pakistan and Afghanistan but I guess England is planning to go to Pakistan and then we do? If England doesn't pretty sure we won't.

 

[honestbharani]

Dunno, could go either way. Pakistan got by fine living alongside the Taliban for 5 years before 9/11 though, so I don't think it's automatically a sign that the risk of terror attacks have shot up.

Two very different situations, tbh. Did you see Imran Khan describe what is happening in Afghanistan as "Afghan people are finally free"?

 

[Prince EWS]

Two very different situations, tbh. Did you see Imran Khan describe what is happening in Afghanistan as "Afghan people are finally free"?

If anything that could make relations between the Taliban and the Pakistan Government better, and terror attacks (at least those organised by the Tailban or pro-Taliban groups) even less likely.

Doesn't mean it won't spook cricket boards though.

 

[Bahnz]

Not surprised in the slightest.

 

[Bahnz]

If anything that could make relations between the Taliban and the Pakistan Government better, and terror attacks (at least those organised by the Tailban or pro-Taliban groups) even less likely.

Doesn't mean it won't spook cricket boards though.

Yeah, this was what I was thinking when I said it could go either way. We could either see the Taliban withdrawing support for terror groups in Pakistan in order to shore up support for their new regime, or Afghanistan could become even more of a staging ground for future terrorist operations. Hard to tell at this point in time.

 

[Athlai]

It might not particularly matter. The regime change alone may see a surge in refugees that could ensure the tour is postponed/cancelled.

 

[Bahnz]

Just thinking with all the recriminations about England's latest defeat and the role that county scheduling plays in that, does NZ have a looming problem of a similar nature? In the past decade the scheduling of the Plunket Shield has gone from starting in early November, with matches sprinkled throughout the summer, to matches sprinkled throughout late October - mid December and the second half of the season held in late February through March, to the current situation where matches are squished into 2 blocks, one in mid-October to mid-November and the other in March-early April. I think this may be a big part of the reemergence of medium pace dobblers in the past couple seasons (particularly in the early rounds of the Plunket Shield) and I've gotta wonder if this is limiting the development of the next gen of batsmen. The kinds of surfaces that Tom Latham and KW grew up on are looking very different to the kinds that are being rolled out today.

 

[Immenso]

We absolutely do have the same problem, it is just obscured by the fact we have our best generation ever, so a settled team, not trying to pluck a red-ball rabbit out of the hat for a test series in the middle of a 3 month domestic white-ball slog.

Nothing has changed since 12 years ago when Tim McIntosh couldn't even make his Auckland white ball team in either format and was preparing for a boxing day test with 4 weeks of Auckland second division club cricket (because Parnell weren't in the top division of the 2-day comp).

This situation was also occasionally slightly exposed by Jeet Raval's buildups occasionally. But not to extent of McIntosh as he was a step up.

 

[Immenso]

It is just England & Australia reverting to NZ's scheduling depths, because their T20 comps can actually make decent dosh.

But there is no excuse for also wrapping that T20 league on either side by exclusive 50 over blocks as NZ do, Australia don't do this to be fair, and England have only made their schedule NZ-like bad this year because of having both the Blast and the Hundred as their counties and ECB are diverging.

I looked at England's county championship schedule for 2019 (last year pre-covid) and they only had a 1 month gap for the Blast. They (Dobell etc) complain about more cricket being pushed to the shoulders of the season. But that is because they play **** loads of cricket of all sorts, plenty of 4 day stuff is still played in summer (until this year). In NZ, ALL 4 day cricket is played on the shoulders of the season.

This scheduling doesn't guarantee you to be bad (as NZ show, if you have an ace generation). But what it does do is when you are bad, it highlights it , sets some up to fail, and provides absolutely terrible preparation for the plan Bs if the plan As don't work.

 

[Immenso]

Where I share Bahnz's concern abut it maybe 'getting worse'. Is that for the last 2 years Plunket Shield is reduced from 10 rounds to 8.

It used to be 4 pre-xmas and 6 in late summer/Autumn.

Now it is 4 and 4.

It is, IMO, the late summer/Autumn rounds that were more test-like in their conditions.

Also last year's green decks in the Autumn were just dumb.

But, I am assuming it will return to 10 when the hockey stick part of the ICC funds for the 8 year period start flowing in.

 

[Immenso]

I the last 15 or so years, since T20 came around, NZ have had this poor scheduling.

In 2 seasons we experimented with slightly different structures.

One ear we didn't do all of T20 in one block. Tried to spread it around a bit to give sky a Friday night regularity. So games in November etc under lights at Westpac or Seddon Park (virtually no crowds). With Plunket Shield scheduled more regularly right up until Xmas instead of pausing at start of December. They only did this one year.

Another year they put the One-Day comp in the Autumn, it may have been 2019? as structured better for CWC in England later that year?. That was the year teams were plundering 400 run innings on flat , dry Autumn pitches.

T20 can make money so fair enough how they schedule that for what they think best. But the reverence NZC give to the free-entry untelevised one-day comp just baffles me.

 

[nzfan]

It might not particularly matter. The regime change alone may see a surge in refugees that could ensure the tour is postponed/cancelled.

Don't know how much of Turner is saying is factual but I think NZC will call off the tour to Pakistan and they'll go to Bangladesh as planned.

Turner raises serious concerns over Pakistan tour

New Zealand great Glenn Turner has questioned whether New Zealand Cricket has its players’ best interests at heart by agreeing to tour Pakistan...

www.odt.co.nz