Do Knights have best depth in world cricket?

Take out six current or former internationals and still be able to field 10 current or former internationals.

Northern Districts have to boast arguably the best depth in domestic cricket worldwide.

Already defending champions of the Super Smash Twenty20 competition and atop the table in this season’s event, there’s no letup from the Knights, who are set to be welcoming four Black Caps back into their side for tomorrow night’s encounter with the Canterbury Kings in Hamilton.

Yet, they still won’t be anywhere near full strength.

Kane Williamson, BJ Watling, Colin de Grandhomme, Tim Southee and Trent Boult will be on the sidelines as they rest up before the India ODI series starting next Wednesday, while Anton Devcich is now in his stint with the Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League.

Watling actually has a broken finger – suffered in the test series against Sri Lanka – and will have it re-assessed on Thursday, while even though de Grandhomme sat out the entire limited-overs section of the Sri Lanka tour, the plan from New Zealand Cricket was to keep him off the park for at least a couple of weeks.

But it’s quite the embarrassment of riches for specialist T20 coach Gareth Hopkins when he still has Tim Seifert, Scott Kuggeleijn, Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi returning, fresh off their appearance in New Zealand’s 35-run win over Sri Lanka at Eden Park last Friday.

You can then add half a dozen more with international experience – captain Dean Brownlie (who will look to return following two matches out with a back niggle), stand-in skipper Daniel Flynn, Corey Anderson, Neil Wagner, Tarun Nethula, and South African import Kyle Abbott.

Nethula – called up after being unwanted at Auckland – may well even be surplus to requirements, considering the country’s two premier spinners are back.

But the non-internationals likely to feature tomorow don’t exactly provide a weak point either.

Nick Kelly smacked 45 off 26 balls opening the innings in the

12-run win over the Firebirds in Wellington, Brett Hampton hits as big a ball as anyone and made

55 off 41 in the two-wicket win over the Canterbury Kings in Christchurch last week, while Daryl Mitchell is in great touch and his all-round qualities have him knocking on the Black Caps’ door.

‘‘We’ve got quite strong depth in the squad,’’ Hopkins said.

It all equates to a mighty task in front of the bottom-of-the-table Kings, who are coming off a sixwicket thumping by the Central Stags at Hagley Oval on Sunday.