Blundell to keep busy with bat, bawl
Being busy is how new Black Caps wicketkeeper-batsman Tom Blundell sees his key role against Australia in the upcoming one-day series.
The 26-year-old replaced an injured Luke Ronchi in the recent Twenty20 series against Bangladesh, and with his Wellington team-mate still sidelined, Blundell will keep the gloves for at least the first two games in the three-match Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series.
New Zealand selector Gavin Larsen has said that test opener Tom Latham is also an option with the gloves in the one-day side.
Blundell said he wanted to maintain the all-action style that saw him feature in the domestic Twenty20 competition this summer and build a strong resume in all three formats in recent years.
‘‘To me it’s about being busy,’’ he said while eyeing an international one-day debut against the visiting Australians
‘‘I can score 360 [degrees] – I try and be busy and hit areas where other batsmen can’t.’’
He said his job with the gloves would be similar.
‘‘Being loud, keeping the boys going – being really busy again.’’
Blundell made his international debut in Mount Maunganui earlier this month as a rapid replacement for Ronchi.
‘‘It was quite a whirlwind time – going from the Super Smash final and then playing the next day for New Zealand.
‘‘I didn’t have much time to soak it all in, but what I got out of it was that it’s just another game.
‘‘Obviously with a bigger crowd, but that’s about it, if you take that away. It would have been good to get a bat.
‘‘I feel my batting at the moment is going really good – so if I can take what I’m doing at the moment at domestic level and if I do get a chance with the bat, I’m pretty confident I can do a job.
‘‘You grow up watching Australia on TV, so to get a chance to play against them is going to be fantastic.’’
The right-hander said he was always ‘‘more a batsman, and a back-up keeper’’ as a teen and then grabbed a chance when Wellington’s Joe Austin-Smellie gave up the game in 2012.
‘‘Then Ronchs [Ronchi] came over and he was always destined to play for New Zealand, so there was always a chance to take the gloves while he was away. It’s all about taking those opportunities, and you never know where they’ll take you.’’
Blundell, who has worked on his keeping in recent seasons with Jason Mills, hopes his elevation to the New Zealand side for the shorter formats will also eventually lead towards the test side.
‘‘Ideally, that’d be the pinnacle,’’ Blundell said. ‘‘The longer form is where I want to be at.
‘‘That would be the next goal, but obviously with BJ [Watling] and Ronchs being here, there’s going to be a lot of hard work to get ahead of them – they’re both fantastic players.’’