Cricket : BLACKCAPS squad named for ODIs

BLACKCAPS squad named for first two One Day Internationals

The BLACKCAPS squad for the first two One Day International (ODI) games against the West Indies has been announced. The squad is:

Daniel Vettori (Captain)
Neil Broom
Grant Elliott
Daniel Flynn
Mark Gillespie
Jamie How
Brendon McCullum
Kyle Mills
Jacob Oram
Jeetan Patel
Jesse Ryder
Tim Southee
Ross Taylor

The squad contains three changes from the Twenty20 squad. Otago batsman Neil Broom earns his first BLACKCAPS call up, while Grant Elliott and Jamie How are recalled to the side.

Broom comes in as a replacement for Scott Styris, who broke a thumb in the first Twenty20 against the West Indies on Boxing Day.

Head of the selection panel, Glenn Turner, said Broom had shown his potential as an international batsman this year. “Neil performed well with the bat in Australia and India with the Emerging Players and New Zealand A sides,” Turner said. “He’s also been scoring a lot of runs in the State Championship this summer.”

Wellington all-rounder Elliott’s recall to the national side comes after solid performances in domestic cricket, including a 3 for 32 in the State Shield one-day competition, and scores of 63 and 78 with the bat in his two latest four-day outings.

“Grant gives us options with both bat and ball,” Tuner said. “He can come in down the order and push the ball around – and also offers a good bowling option with his medium-paced swing.”

The first ODI is at Queenstown on Wednesday 31 December. The second is at AMI Stadium, Christchurch, on Saturday 3 January.