Young Ferns star Kerr seeking consistency
The selectors have seen enough. And that’s fortunate, because between now and their World Cup opener against Sri Lanka on June 1 the Black Caps play no one-day internationals.
It’s difficult to fathom a leadup to a pinnacle world tournament with no official matches in that format for 14 weeks, and does little for New Zealand’s chances of making an eighth World Cup semifinal. It simply shows the power and financial pull of the Indian Premier League.
New Zealand Cricket confirmed in November it would release its players for the entire IPL – which runs from March 23 until around May 15 – unlike powerhouses India, Australia and England who are restricting their players’ involvement. Eight likely Black Caps cup squad members, plus fringe men Ish Sodhi and Adam Milne, are IPL-bound after the third test against Bangladesh in Christchurch.
Purely it’s down to money, and a key part of the Master Agreement with the NZ Cricket Players’ Association, which enables stars such as Kane Williamson and Trent Boult to take leave and more than double their annual NZC earnings of around $400,000. Australia’s highest-paid player, by contrast, banks over $3 million annually without offshore Twenty20 earnings.
It also means Australia’s cup buildup is on a different level. As New Zealand play a seriously underwhelming three tests against Bangladesh, Australia contest back-to-back away series of five ODIs against India and Pakistan, finishing on March 31, then release their IPL players and require them to return for a Brisbane camp in early May.
New Zealand are pencilled in for three 50-over Brisbane warmup matches against an Australian XI – likely to feature returning stars Steve Smith and David Warner – in the first week of May.
Take out New Zealand’s IPL players and it leaves Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, Tom Latham, Jimmy Neesham and Matt Henry of the cup frontliners.
‘‘It would be lovely to be in a position to say ‘stay at home’. But we’re not and we can’t compete with the IPL dollars, that’s just the reality,’’ coach Gary Stead told Stuff last year.
Stead will have the IPL bowlers on prescribed workloads with their T20 franchises in the nets, She’s already got a double century to her name, but 18-year-old Kiwi star Amelia Kerr doesn’t feel like she deserves to be labelled an all-rounder just yet.
Kerr was just 17 years and 243 days old when she struck an unbeaten 232 off 145 balls in an
ODI women’s match against Ireland last June.
That knock saw her become the youngest ever player – male or female – to strike a double century in international cricket.
But the talented legspinner won’t consider herself an allrounder until she becomes more consistent with the bat.
In 15 knocks in ODI cricket, Kerr has just two scores of note – the unbeaten 232, and an unbeaten 81.
Her 13 other scores are all under 31, with seven of those in single figures.
Kerr looms as a danger player for Australia ahead of the three-match ODI series, but it’s not the same as a competitive 50-over match situation.
That won’t happen until the squad assemble in mid-May and play warmup matches against India at The Oval on May 25, and West Indies at Bristol three days later.
Selection-wise, they’ve shown their hand and Doug Bracewell and Ish Sodhi are set to be the unluckiest two. The 14 who beat a hugely disappointing Bangladesh 3-0, with the addition of backup gloveman Tim Seifert, looks the cup squad.
The polarising Colin Munro will go as backup batsman who can bowl a bit, and Todd Astle’s tidy solitary outing against Bangladesh suggests his name is starting at the Waca in Perth today.
The rising star is keen to prove her double century wasn’t a fluke.
‘‘I always wanted to be an all-rounder and it’s something I’m still working on,’’ Kerr said.
‘‘I got the opportunity to open the batting that day, so I wanted to do something special. It was a pretty surreal day.
‘‘But I guess it was only one innings, and I’ve got to prove myself consistently at international level against the best sides in the world to feel like a genuine all-rounder.’’ Australia have held the Rose Bowl Trophy since 2000, and New Zealand are keen to wrestle it back.
‘‘I wasn’t even alive the last time we won it. It’s a really big deal for us,’’ Kerr said. ‘‘To win it would be really special.
‘‘We’ve got some of the world’s best players in Sophie Devine and Suzie Bates. So I think we’ve got to back ourselves and the depth in our squad to be able to challenge the Aussies.’’