Key Black Caps to miss warm-ups Munro to specialise with white ball
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson, wicketkeeper BJ Watling and frontline pace bowlers Trent Boult, Tim Southee or Neil Wagner will miss the pink- and red-ball cricket warmup matches against England in Hamilton next week.
However, the remaining test incumbents will feature in the March 14-15 (pink-ball) and 16-17 (red-ball) games, despite the fixtures working concurrently with the eighth round of the Plunket Shield.
Tom Latham and Martin Guptill captain the two sides.
Two tests between New Zealand and England follow; the day-nighter in Auckland from March 22 and the day match in Christchurch from March 30.
Williamson gets a spell, while pace bowlers Boult, Southee and Wagner are expected to convene for a camp at
If he [Ross Taylor] didn’t happen to play, that would be a surprise. Let’s hope he doesn’t get an injury, because he plays pretty well when he gets injured.
Mount Maunganui in the lead-up. The Weekend Herald understands they will test their abilities under lights at Bay Oval.
Neither Matt Henry nor Lockie Ferguson are named for the England matches either. They could also be camp-bound.
Watling, who has not played for New Zealand this summer, is expected to join the group.
His last test came almost a year ago against South Africa in Hamilton.
Tom Blundell took the gloves when he was injured during the West Indies series.
Blundell is part of the pink-ball XI. Watling is wicketkeeping for Northern Districts against Canterbury in their first-class match at Whangarei.
Ross Taylor has chosen to only play in the red-ball fixture at Hamilton rather than seeking further experience against the pink ball.
“We’ve selected a strong group of fringe players around our current test group,” selector Gavin Larsen said in a press release.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for them to challenge themselves against a good international side.
“In the midst of our Plunket Shield season this has been a difficult process, but the major associations have been understanding and we’ve appreciated their support,” Larsen said in the statement. Colin Munro’s test cricket dreams are over. The batting allrounder wants to specialise in white ball formats, with an emphasis on trying to represent New Zealand at the next year’s 50-over World Cup.
He will be unavailable for the remainder of this season’s Plunket Shield domestic competition, or the England tests in the middle order if injury strikes. His last first-class match was for Auckland against Northern Districts in November.
Unlike Mitchell McClenaghan, Munro will continue to keep his NZC contract which ends in July.
“I don’t think it [the contract] changes, because the season’s pretty much done at the end of this [England series]. There’s no white-ball cricket after tomorrow’s game.
“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to play more test cricket. But I’ve given first-class cricket a fair crack, now it’s time for a change of focus.
“My passion for that format of the game isn’t what it once was.”
Munro’s next foray after the ODIs against England will be in the Indian Premier League. He was selected by the Delhi Daredevils in January’s auction for $406,000.
His prodigious six-hitting also catapulted him into the national consciousness this summer, particularly as the first batsman to hit three T20 international centuries. Many would argue a first-class average of 51.58 at a strike rate of 99 from 48 matches, including 13 centuries, deserved to add to his one test cap against South Africa at Port Elizabeth in 2013.
Instead, Munro will continue using his licence to unleash across 20 or 50 overs.
He regularly seeks the advice of former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum. They starred together for the champion Trinbago Knight Riders in last year’s Caribbean Premier League.
“Brendon’s been the one cricketing constant I can fall back on, regardless of whether I’m going through a rough or a good patch. He keeps me grounded by having a laugh and a beer,” Munro told the Weekend Herald in January.
Munro consulted McCullum about this decision a while ago. “His mantra is always to be aggressive.” David Leggat