Cricket: Seamer Southee claims early Stags scalps

Ben Wheeler

Not having bowled to Daniel Vettori before, the Central Districts Stags yesterday found the former Black Caps captain a difficult proposition.

"Vettori batted very well but he's quite difficult in that he tends to wander around the crease to hit to different parts of the ground," Devon Hotel CD seamer Ben Wheeler said last night after bowling out the Northern Districts Knights for 287 in the first innings at Seddon Park, Hamilton.

No7 Vettori scored 78 while opener Brad Wilson provided the platform with 71 in the second-round, four-day Plunket Shield match on day one.

But CD made the most of a juicy wicket to have four wickets down cheaply with English import Peter Trego and Wheeler picking up two wickets each.

Trego finished with 4-63 while Wheeler was the most frugal with 2-40 but CD felt they should have bowled better.

"It was a pretty fresh wicket," said Wheeler who had no qualms about padding up as nightwatchman after CD lost two early wickets in their innings before stumps last night.

Black Caps seamer Tim Southee struck twice, removing stand-in captain Jamie How and Carl Cachopa for golden ducks.

"Howser and Chops got good balls first up so there wasn't much they could do about it," Wheeler said.

Opener Ben Smith (1 run) and Wheeler (3 not out) will resume this morning with the forecast for thundery rain at times.

"We had the same forecast for today but we had a few spits and the sun was out so I'm not sure if we can believe it," Wheeler said, adding CD were dead keen on carrying on today.

CD wicketkeeper Kruger van Wyk had a great day with the gloves, snaffling three edges off Trego's deliveries and one off Doug Bracewell.