Cricket: Canning debacle clouds selection

By RICHARD BOOCK

Say what you like about Sir Richard Hadlee, but he remains a man of his word.

New Zealand Cricket's convener of selectors said all along that the one-day squad to meet Zimbabwe would contain a surprise or two, and between phone calls to ICC headquarters in Britain and Tama Canning's house in Auckland, he was hardly overstating his case.

Canning was, by most accounts, a last-minute scratching from the squad after NZC's belated inquiry into his residency qualifications turned up an unfavourable result, although Hadlee would say only that he was "very, very close" and that "we were keen to use him" when pressed on the issue at the weekend.

His planned surprises had been the recall of Mathew Sinclair at the expense of opening batsman Chris Nevin, and the promotion of test success Chris Martin in place of Shayne O'Connor.

But the Canning residency debacle overshadowed both and left questions hanging over NZC's selection process and its overseas scouting policy.

Canning's position has been taken by Wellington rookie James Franklin, who - with his meagre record in domestic one-day cricket - would have carried some surprise value itself, if it were not for the sequence of events which led to his call-up.

The 12th man for New Zealand during the Boxing Day test, Franklin had taken just one Shell Cup wicket at the time of his selection, and was struggling to win a place in his provincial side.

NZC has made a fair amount of noise about its willingness to search for Kiwi talent abroad.

But it seems to have made a fundamental error by assuming eligibility in terms of parentage, which is the key issue in many sports, instead of residency - which is what counts in cricket.

Tamahau Karangatukituki Canning, aged 23, the form all-rounder this summer, was born and raised in Australia and made his first-class debut for the Australian Academy two summers ago before being targeted by the long arm of the NZC.

A New Zealand A tourist to England last year, he has 2 1/2 years to run on his four-year residency qualification, and heard of the snag only on Saturday morning.

"I was really disappointed to hear about it," he said from Eden Park yesterday, but declined to comment further.

The news has similar repercussions for Canterbury spinner Aaron Redmond, who Hadlee said, was also born in Australia and would not be eligible to play for this country, if required.

"It seems interesting that NZC are bringing people from overseas, putting them through the Academy, taking them on youth tours, Academy tours and A tours, and yet when we want to select them for higher honours a technicality is put in their way," Hadlee said.

He said it was not necessarily the end of the ODI line for Nevin, who was dropped after a patchy run through Africa, or for O'Connor, whose inability to keep a lid on the scoring rate - particularly at the end of the innings - ultimately cost him his place.

"Shayne did a fantastic job for us in the tests, but in the ODI arena his economy rate is high. He does have a problem with bowling at the death, and we just feel that he's a little flat and missing a yard or two of pace.

"As for Chris Nevin, he had one or two good performances and a few misses in Africa, and we felt that with Adam Parore keeping so well and coming off a test 50, we needed to look for a new opening combination."

The squads for tomorrow's match in Taupo are:

New Zealand: Nathan Astle, Mathew Sinclair, Stephen Fleming (capt), Roger Twose, Chris Cairns, Craig McMillan, Adam Parore, Chris Harris, Brooke Walker, Scott Styris, Chris Martin, James Franklin.

Zimbabwe: Heath Streak (capt), Andy Flower, Guy Whittall, Alistair Campbell, Stuart Carlisle, Gavin Rennie, Doug Marillier, Trevor Madondo, Angus Mackay, Travis Friend, Mluleki Nkala, Brian Murphy, Bryan Strang, Henry Olonga.