Cricket: Fit again Ryder a Taylor made replacement

Jesse Ryder. Photo / Getty Images

With a Ross Taylor-sized hole in the Black Caps' batting line-up waiting to be filled, one man more than capable of doing so began his comeback yesterday.

Jesse Ryder, who could probably give Taylor some advice on calf injuries, made his return to the crease in club cricket in Wellington this weekend, hitting an unbeaten 40 in Naenae's 10-wicket win over Upper Hutt.

Ryder took five sixes from the third over of the innings as his 17-ball knock guided his side to victory in the two-day game and, more importantly, came through the match with a clean bill of health, meaning he's likely to make his return to domestic cricket sooner rather than later.

The 27-year-old suffered a slight tear to his left calf while fielding for Wellington in their HRV Cup loss to Central Districts shortly before Christmas, ruling him out of New Zealand's series against Zimbabwe.

All going well, he should be available for selection when South Africa come to these shores next month.

Whether the selectors find a spot for him is another question.

A fit Ryder would be hard to leave out in the shorter forms of the game but the Black Caps, winners of three of their last four tests, seem to have found the right balance in their side to play in the white clothing.

Kane Williamson was promoted to fill Ryder's shoes at No 3 in the recent win over Zimbabwe with Dean Brownlie, New Zealand's best batsman in their drawn test series against Australia, taking over at No 5.

He was followed by Dan Vettori at six and BJ Watling at seven, with the four seamers the Black Caps need to take 20 wickets rounding out the order.

Captain Taylor, who tore his right calf while at the crease against Zimbabwe, should recover in time to take on the Proteas when the three-test series begins in March, leaving Ryder the odd man out in the New Zealand XI.

Ryder's return would create a welcome headache for Black Caps coach John Wright and, pivotally, leave the Wellingtonian with a fight on his hands to earn back his spot.

His conditioning, the cause of much consternation within New Zealand cricket, would need to be at its best for Wright to even consider dropping one of his top six.

Since his debut in 2008, Ryder has been almost guaranteed a spot in the test team by default, but with batting now an area of relative strength, that spot is severely under threat.

While there is no doubt the gifted Ryder, when fit and in form, is a potential match-winner with the bat, some have questioned his commitment in the past.

That commitment will need to be at its utmost if Ryder is to force his way back into the side and, at the same time, the New Zealand top order will know repeated failure will not be tolerated for long with a fully-focused Ryder breathing down their necks.

It all makes for a promising prospect for New Zealand cricket fans, as the side seek their first test win over South Africa since 2004.