Oram bails out – and cricketing ship sinks to the bottom
It was presumably just an unfortunate coincidence that Black Caps all-rounder Jacob Oram opted out of his New Zealand Cricket central contract on the day the team suffered a Twenty20 thrashing against South Africa in Durban.
The 34-year-old Oram, who played 33 tests and 160 oneday internationals, secured an early release from his contract. ‘‘This was a very difficult decision but in recent weeks I have come to the conclusion that I can no longer make a full-time commitment to NZC,’’ Oram said.
‘‘Various factors have led me to make this decision including my age, the stage of my career and the impending birth of my second child.’’
Oram, who quit test cricket in 2009 in a bid to prolong his career, has struggled with injuries and managed only one ODI and a T20 match against Sri Lanka on tour in October and November.
Oram would continue to play T20 cricket for Central Districts and play in competitions overseas, he said.
New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum was unapologetic for his team’s approach after South Africa trounced them by eight wickets with 47 balls to spare in the republic.
New Zealand managed a paltry 86, their second lowest T20 score and committed the cardinal sin of being unable to bat out their 20 overs.
South Africa romped home in 12.1 overs with new captain Faf du Plessis making 38 not out, while Quinton de Kock, making his debut four days after his 20th birthday, slammed a quick 28 not out.
‘‘We played some aggressive cricket and missed a couple of fundamentals on the way,’’ McCullum said of his team’s collapse to 86 all out after winning the toss, with several of the batsmen falling to over-ambitious strokes.
‘‘That is the way we are going to be, that is the way we are going to put them under pressure. We were probably a bit too keen, we were outplayed,’’ added the captain.
India’s champion batsman Sachin Tendulkar has announced he will retire from international one-day cricket but will remain available for tests.