New Zealand A to tour Sri Lanka

NEW ZEALAND Cricket selection manager Sir Richard Hadlee today named the New Zealand A team to tour Sri Lanka in September.

NZ A will be managed by Sir Richard and coached by State Auckland Aces coach Mark ODonnell and State Wellington Firebirds coach Vaughn Johnson.

A number of players performed well during the domestic season and deserve an opportunity at the A level as part of their progression.

Peter Fulton scored two centuries in the State Championship with a high score of 221* and had an average of 69 with the bat.

We are keen to explore and further develop his captaincy skills during the A tour.

Jesse Ryder also performed well in the State Championship with a high score of 236 and an average of 44.64 with the bat, while Jamie How scored three First Class centuries with an average of 47.75.

Jeetan Patel will continue to build on what we hope will be aucsuccessful time in Zimbabwe with the BLACKCAPS. He bowled well at domestic level last season and has the ability to bowl under the bat and late in the innings.

The team has also been selected to help us gain a better understanding of the new ODI rules and to explore the use of a substitute player. We have a very full programme of ODIs coming up and we need to explore strategies for maximising our performance under the new rules, Sir Richard said.

We have selected James Franklin as an all rounder as we believe all rounders will have an increased role under the new rules.

Chris Martin has been selected to explore the opportunity to use a specialist as the substitute, which could see him bowl but not have to bat in a one-day match.

We would like to see how Chris Harris goes in Sri Lanka before deciding whether he has recovered from his shoulder injury sufficiently to be selected for South Africa.

Daryl Tuffey is returning to full fitness and we want to see him return to form in Sri Lanka.

The tour is also an opportunity for players who have had a taste of international cricket but who have for various reasons not yet established themselves to develop from being fringe players, Sir Richard said.

The team is: Peter Fulton (captain), James Franklin, Chris Harris, Gareth Hopkins, Jamie How, James Marshall, Bruce Martin, Chris Martin, Iain OBrien, Michael Papps, Jeetan Patel, Jesse Ryder, Mathew Sinclair, Daryl Tuffey