KEY POINTS:
Napier was all retro yesterday, rejoicing in its standing as New Zealand's art-deco capital.
Feather boas, straw boaters and flapper-style dresses adorned the streets as biplanes roared overhead.
But New Zealand coach John Bracewell was in back-to-the-future mode when he looked ahead to game four of the ODI
series against England at McLean Park on Wednesday.
One young batsman with his best years to come, Daniel Flynn, is back in the squad at the expense of Auckland allrounder Paul Hitchcock, having had a taste of the international game in the second Twenty20 game in Christchurch 12 days ago.
But if that sounds like a batsman replacing a bowler, it's not, said Bracewell. Flynn's selection was more to do with the fitness of Jesse Ryder than a swap for Hitchcock.
The explosive lefthand opener twisted an ankle batting in the six-wicket loss at Eden Park on Friday night.
"He seems a lot better today, and it is moving in the right direction," Bracewell said.
It's not the first ankle problem Ryder has had this season. He missed the invitation XI game against Bangladesh before Christmas with the same niggle.
The loss of Ryder would be a blow, partly because he provides fresh box-office appeal, plus he and Brendon McCullum show a hint of becoming a thrilling opening pairing in the longer term.
Bracewell maintained confidence in the batsmen remains high despite an ordinary performance against England at Eden Park. New Zealand made 234 for nine, but always appeared 20-30 runs short after tumbling to 95 for six, despite Jacob Oram's heroics.
That enabled England to get their first win in the series.
"They [England] bowled very well. We lost some wickets early, simple as that," Bracewell said. "But we haven't lost any confidence because of it and we will continue to try and go out there and attack them. We want to build up a style which is, one, entertaining; and two, a winning formula in the bigger picture."
However, Bracewell confirmed the selectors are in consultation with Otago officials about placing some players in their sides to play England in a two-day and a three-day game in Dunedin next week.
Four of the ODI squad sought game time in yesterday's penultimate round of State Shield games.
Peter Fulton, who desperately needs runs, was unlucky. Canterbury's game with Otago in Christchurch was washed out.
However, Scott Styris thumped a rapid 72 for Auckland against Northern Districts, while Iain O'Brien and Jeetan Patel got through some work for Wellington against Central Districts at the Basin Reserve.
Bracewell had some sympathy for Fulton, who best epitomises an awkward situation where most of the batsmen have yet to play a thoroughly dominant innings in the series.
"He is struggling with rhythm and the spasmodic nature of one-day cricket. You can get long periods of time when you are not getting a bat and you are just facing net bowlers."
So it is a good time for specialist batting coach Mark O'Neill to rejoin the national squad, after spending time with the national under-19s who start their World Cup campaign in Malaysia today.
* New Zealand kick off their challenge for the world under-19 cricket title against Zimbabwe in Johor, Malaysia, today. NZ, captained by Northern Districts batsman Kane Williamson, have been grouped with Pakistan, Zimbabwe and the hosts for the 16-team biennial tournament. They narrowly lost to India, then beat Ireland in their two warm-up games since arriving in Malaysia.
