No major surprises in NZ squad

There are no major surprises in New Zealand’s 14-man squad announced today for the Commonwealth Bank Series against Australia and England, with injured incumbents Kyle Mills, Scott Styris and Jacob Oram all left out but likely to join the squad mid-tour after permission was granted by Cricket Australia for such changes to be made.

With the exception of the injured trio New Zealand will be fielding a full-strength side, with the rotation policy employed in the current series against Sri Lanka having been discarded. But some of the players who may not have played were it not for the policy have been rewarded for their good performances, those being Michael Mason and Mark Gillespie.

The only things in the squad that could be considered surprising are the selection of Craig McMillan over James Marshall, who has performed reasonably with the bat and fielded exceptionally well against Sri Lanka, and the announcement that Hamish Marshall will be the reserve wicket-keeper should Brendon McCullum suffer an injury during the tournament.

Mills is currently bowling for Auckland, while Styris and Oram are playing for Auckland and Central respectively as specialist batsmen, but all are said to be on track to join the squad during the tournament.

The tournament begins with Australia playing against England at the MCG on January 12.

New Zealand Squad:
Stephen Fleming (captain), Andre Adams, Nathan Astle, Shane Bond, James Franklin, Peter Fulton, Mark Gillespie, Hamish Marshall, Michael Mason, Brendon McCullum (wicketkeeper), Craig McMillan, Jeetan Patel, Ross Taylor, Daniel Vettori.