KEY POINTS:
Don't blame Auckland Cricket and Auckland coach Mark O'Donnell for James Anderson's bowling heroics on day two of the current test match.
If you want to blame someone, blame New Zealand Cricket- if you want to absolve the NZ top order of any responsibility. To leave O'Donnell carrying the can is too simplistic. What recent events have shown is a lack of cohesion between NZC and the provinces.
The Auckland bowling attack has lost four seamers - Kyle Mills and Chris Martin to the Black Caps and Darryl Tuffey and Andre Adams to the Indian Cricket League.
With four places available to younger, lesser players, filling one of those places with an available touring test-match quality player hardly means a young hopeful misses out. Yes, a young hopeful from Auckland does miss out but he must have been third XI hopeful because that is about how far from the original team he would lie.
There are benefits to New Zealand and Auckland cricket by bringing in Anderson because it helps limit the drop-off in standard of domestic cricket the missing players cause and also provides an experience element to the Auckland team for younger players to learn from.
Let's not overlook the fact, too, that the initial plan was for Anderson to play four games for Auckland because it was not expected he would gain test selection. But in reality Anderson gains valuable match practice, gains some rhythm and goes on to bowl New Zealand out.
But don't blame O'Donnell; his job is to help Auckland win. It is NZC's job to ensure a co-ordinated effort to help the Black Caps win.
Obviously it was not made clear to O'Donnell that his actions and that of the Auckland Cricket CEOs in playing Anderson was to the detriment of the Black Caps.
But perhaps this situation would never had occurred had NZC managed to settle its differences with Andre Adams or not misdiagnosed Darryl Tuffey's initial injury and then mishandled his comeback.
And perhaps Anderson's swing bowling capabilities should never have materialised had the message got through from NZC to Wellington Cricket that the groundsman at the Basin Reserve was to produce a dry, abrasive surface - one-up in a three-game series going to two venues where flat wickets are a possibility and a pitch is produced that brings the England strength back in to the game.
England swing the ball and they were provided with ideal swing bowling conditions. OK they didn't bowl first but they did outbowl New Zealand over the first two days.
I'm not saying New Zealand should have played for a draw but rather produced conditions to favour their strengths and ensure they didn't have to change their team.
The advantage of two spinners and a very good middle to lower order was given up due to a NZ cricket environment that lacks cohesion.
