Howarth will try to persuade Hadlee

Press, 11 February 1983, Page 30

Howarth will try to persuade Hadlee

NZPA Melbourne The New Zealand cricket captain, Geoff Howarth, will "try his best” to convince the fast bowler, Richard Hadlee, to play in Sunday’s World Series Cup final against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Hadlee’s fitness was still clouded yesterday after he did not play in the first final on Wednesday and it is expected to be as late as this afternoon before a decision on his availability- for the series-deciding match is made. Howarth said that the Canterbury and Nottinghamshire all-rounder appeared to be responding to physiotherapy

out added that a decision on Hadlee’s fitness and any consequent need for a replacement player will have to be delayed, at least until today. “Obviously Richard is a very important player for us,” Howarth said, “as our only strike bowler and a guy who can occasionally chip a few runs when they’re needed. “He’s clearly very valuable to the side and we’d be keen to have him play even if he wasn’t 100 per cent fit.” In his most strongly worded statement to date on Hadlee’s hamstring problem, Howarth added: “Obviously I

can’t comment on the extent of Richard’s injury. “With any injury only the player himself is aware of the full extent of the problem and of the effect it would be likely to have on his game. Every player will react differently to an injury and ultimately it is the player’s own assessment which determines whether he plays or not. “With a match coming up as important as Sunday’s is for us, some players feel that it is a challenge to try and overcome the injury to play. Whether Richard feels like that in this case I don't know — I haven’t spoken to him today but I will try my best to persuade him to play.”

So important is Hadlee to the side, Howarth added, that the player's decision on his own availability would be accepted as final. “If he is willing to play and even if he’s at less than full fitness, we would have no hesitation in taking him into the game,” he said. “Obviously a player less than 100 per cent fit won't give you the value you want of him. “Nevertheless, in Richard’s case we might be willing to take a chance. He’s a great competitor.

“If he was firing on only three cylinders, his play would obviously be affected and there would be some reservations about risking

him but we'd have to hope that he would accept the challenge and try and overcome the thing on the day.” Hadlee himself had been reticent about his injury. He has regularly attended treatment sessions with the team’s physiotherapist, Graham Allison, reporting slight improvements after every workout. Yesterday he again reported that he was suffering less discomfort and experiencing more freedom than he had since he suffered the injury in Perth last Sunday, but added hastily that his availability for the crucial final was by no means assured. He intends to take part in

the team’s voluntary training session at the M.C.G. today where he will test his bowling action and ultimately decide his availability. Should he cry unfit. Howarth said, the Otago fast bowler, Richard Webb, would join the team on the first available flight. “Hadlee is obviously invaluable to us, he’s a world class player —- a superb attacking bowler; but if he can’t play, we'd just have to accept that he's not there and get on with the job without him. “This is a vital match for us and we will have to attack it from that point of view, Hadlee or no Hadlee. The team would obviously

want him to be there but they wouldn’t be too downhearted if he wasn’t. “We feel we can still beat Australia without him and I'm sure the guys will knuckle down to their jobs. The loss to Australia on Wednesday night was due to a number of circumstances — most particularly the rain — but the fact that Richard didn’t play in that match didn’t have anything to do with it,” Howarth said. “We had to bowl well, we didn’t and we were beaten. We know we have to do better on Sunday and whether Richard is available or not. that is what we will do.”