Cricket: Bracewell backs players' return to State Shield

It must be a coach's prerogative, but John Bracewell believes he has found a chink of light at the end of a very dark tunnel.

A keen sense of perspective would have helped with that as he pondered the fate of the abandoned Sri Lankan tour.

"We've [acting manager Ross Dykes and Bracewell] just been dispersing guys," Bracewell said on leaving Napier, where the second one-day international was to have been played.

"The whole thing's surreal. It's beyond sport," he said.

Bracewell's thoughts, if an international opponent can't be hastily arranged, will now turn towards Australia.

He said there was now an opportunity for fringe players to measure themselves up against the Black Caps in the State Shield.

"It's a good measure when you think that in something like eight years Daniel Vettori has played eight first-class games for Northern Districts," the Black Caps coach said. "It's a good opportunity to embed these guys into domestic cricket.

"Whether it's good conditioning to play a side like Australia is beside the point. For our domestic competition, it's a rare opportunity and a slight silver lining in what is a very dark cloud."

One of those players aiming to force their way into the Black Caps squad is Craig McMillan, who went some way to showing he is not a spent force by scoring a match-winning century for Canterbury in the first round of the State Shield.

"It was good for him to bounce back straight away and stamp his authority on domestic cricket," Bracewell said.

When Australia chewed up and spat out New Zealand in the tests during their recent series, many of the Black Caps bemoaned the lack of preparation provided by the tour to Bangladesh.

However it was at least five-day cricket, albeit an insipid version.

Bracewell said that having the Black Caps involved in domestic cricket was a better option than being kept together to play hastily arranged games against scratch opposition.

"It's to keep them in competitive cricket," Bracewell said.

"The problem we have with warm-up games and matches of a trial basis is that a number of them are playing so much cricket that unless it's competition, they struggle to get motivated and up for it."

Bracewell said he and Dykes took the opportunity to talk to the Sri Lankan players before they left, but acknowledged there was a feeling of hopelessness at times like this.

"We went around the players and wished them all the best, but in those situations what can you do?"

- HERALD ON SUNDAY