KEY POINTS:
Unfortunately for the Black Caps' captain Stephen Fleming, he must take responsibility for New Zealand's premature exit from the tri-series following the disastrous loss to England.
The time has also come for a change in the Black Caps leadership although my reasoning isn't primarily because of Fleming's batting
the other night against England.
Every player in the world will tell you that if you use up almost half of the deliveries available to chase 271, as Fleming did in Brisbane, then you need to make damn sure you bat your side to victory. Failure to do so ensures the responsibility lands on your shoulders.
Although disappointing, these things do happen at times. Of more concern is the nature of Fleming's explanations for the steady stream of losses we have been forced to endure lately.
With New Zealand having lost seven of their past nine games, the endless drivel offered as explanations makes it clear to me that Fleming does not hate losing.
Couple this with his statistics, and it is clear that he doesn't know how to win either. This is a problem. Never has he looked more comfortable with losing than after the match against England. He admitted that he had no idea why the Black Caps kept losing, only that he thought they were playing quite good cricket. Even more alarming was the admission that he had no clue as to how he could get his team to win again. He even managed a chuckle at one stage.
We have had a dreadful tri-series and lost 20 of the last 22 against Australia. I've never heard of an international side with that sort of record before. One out of 10 would be bad enough, and by that stage something would be done about it.
To come out at the end of a game, with that sort of record behind you, and claim everything is on track, preparations are going well, and that this is a minor hiccup, is both disgraceful and embarrassing. If this represents things going according to plan - what will it look like when the wheels come off?
Over time statistics don't lie and a lot of numbers have been allowed to sneak under the radar under Fleming's captaincy. The perception of Fleming as Captain Fantastic takes a bit of a hit according to the statistics.
New Zealand's overall win record in ODIs is about 45 per cent, while the winning ratio under his leadership is about 47 per cent. So he's only a whisker better than average.
Even Martin Crowe managed 49 per cent from his 44 games and he had some pretty ordinary players to work with. Fleming has had the cream of the crop in terms of talent.
So what's to be lost if we give Daniel Vettori the leadership for the Chappell-Hadlee series? Not a lot if you believe the numbers - I doubt he can do worse than seven losses from nine.
There is absolutely no downside to letting Vettori having a go at righting the ship. What you will get is an injection of new life into a team that is stumbling disastrously under Fleming's leadership.
Fleming has been there too long. The results are obvious, and well documented.
He is now a generation beyond his own side, and is no longer the natural leader. The Black Caps just aren't Fleming's team any more and deep down, he knows it.
Vettori is now the natural leader - he has shown a flair for leadership, been groomed for the past two years, and we played our best ever one-day cricket under his captaincy during the Chappell-Hadlee series a year ago.
Fleming has been there for 12 years - he has done his dash. There's no shame or disgrace in that.
On the positive side, it will relieve him of a lot of responsibility that he no longer needs or particularly enjoys. Vettori has already shown he has the taste for a fight with Australia. So give him his go.