Team named to play tourists

Press, 1 February 1988, Page 38

Team named to play tourists

Two batsmen certain of test selection and three others challenging for positions in the New Zealand team have been chosen for the Shell XI to meet the England cricket tourists at New Plymouth on February 7, 8 and 9.

Martin Crowe was named yesterday as the captain of the side. Among his team-mates is Andrew Jones, whose performances in Australia in the last few weeks have earned him a permanent place in the national lineup. The opening pair, Phil Home and Robert Vance, are contenders to partner John Wright in the first test in Christchurch a few

days later, while Mark Greatbatch has the chance to press his claims for a middle-order role.

Jonathan Millmow, only 20 years of age but increasingly impressive in recent appearances for •Wellington, joins two fastmedium bowlers with a smattering of international experience, Willie Watson and Brian Barrett, in the Shell XI. The composition of the team follows the expected pattern of giving likely test batsmen the opportunity to gauge England’s bowling resources, without showing the tourists New Zealand’s own leading bowlers. Neither Canterbury nor

Otago are represented! Their Shell Trophy match in Dunedin will not be affected, but the other four provinces have need to find replacements. The Shell XI is.— Martin Crowe (captain, Central Districts), Phil Horne (Auckland), Robert Vance (Wellington), Andrew Jones (Wellington), Mark Greatbatch (Central), Chris Kuggeleijn (Northern), Vaughan Brown (Auckland), Ervin McSweeney (Wellington), Willie Watson (Auckland), Jonathan Millmow (Wellington), Brian Barrett (Northern). The twelfth man is a national junior international, Rodney Brown, from Taranaki. © New Zealand will join India and Sri Lanka in a

triangular limited-over cricket tournament in Sharjah (United Arab Emirates) in late March. Announcing yesterday that the national cricket council had accepted an invitation to send a team to Sharjah for two weeks, the chairman, Bob Vance, , said the three countries would play each other twice. The New Zealand side will not be at full strength, however. Mr Vance said some players had indicated they would not be available for personal reasons, but the tournament presented an opportunity to give others experience in this type of cricket.