Cricket: Taylor keeping four-man seam bowling option open

Ross Taylor. Photo / Getty Images

Might a four-man seam bowling attack, allied to more fast-medium friendly pitch conditions, become a regular occurrence for New Zealand this summer?

Captain Ross Taylor kept the option open yesterday as New Zealand stick with the policy which worked so well against Australia in Hobart last month.

Chris Martin, Trent Boult, Tim Southee and Doug Bracewell will be backed up by left arm spinner Dan Vettori against Zimbabwe today.

Vettori will bat at No 6 - his batting numbers make a case for him moving up a spot in the order anyway - and new wicketkeeper BJ Watling at No 7 as New Zealand look for a new approach to get around the issue of insufficient runs from their specialist batsmen.

Producing conditions to suit makes some sense if New Zealand's concerns over a shortage of runs continues. If New Zealand's difficulties making a substantial first innings total continue, and they have to make do with totals around 300, they need all possible options to get 20 wickets.

"The injury to [batsman] Jesse Ryder made the decision a lot easier," Taylor said yesterday. "Four seamers worked well in Hobart, so I wouldn't rule it out.

"It's not necessarily just grassy wickets, it's how we look after the ball and use our quick bowlers with reverse and conventional swing."

However, New Zealand's next opponents, South Africa, are well-served by Dale Steyn and his seam bowling cronies, principally Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander. They will make life awkward if given helpful conditions.

Taylor also confirmed yesterday that Watling "always had the inside running" on rival Kruger van Wyk for the test keeping job.

"It was always going to be BJ, but it was nice to see him score runs and keep pretty well," he said.

Which raises the question of why van Wyk was even sent to Gisborne to play for the New Zealand Selection last weekend as an opening batsman if the keeping decision had already been made. How are Watling's long-term keeping prospects?

"I guess every time you select someone it's always the hope that he takes the spot and can fill it for years to come," Taylor said.