Cricket: New faces in first Otago team

Brad Rodden
Brad Rodden
Otago has named its first team of the season and there are two new faces.

Batsmen Ryan Duffy and Brad Rodden have been included in a squad of 14.

The Volts will travel to Rangiora tomorrow to play Canterbury in a three-day warm-up game beginning on Monday, and there is a twenty20 fixture scheduled for Thursday.

Otago will have to make do without a significant group of key players.

Brendon McCullum, Hamish Rutherford and Neil Wagner are in Bangladesh with the Black Caps test squad and all-rounders Jimmy Neesham and Nathan McCullum leave for Bangladesh next week to link up with the one-day squad.

Veteran fast bowler James McMillan is being rested, and former Black Cap Jesse Ryder is still serving a six-month ban for taking a prohibited substance. He will become eligible for Otago on October 19.

For Duffy and Rodden, the three-day game is an opportunity to make a positive impression ahead of Otago's opening Plunket Shield match against Wellington at the Basin Reserve beginning on October 27.

With Rutherford promoted to the Black Caps, Neil Broom will move up to open the batting and Ryder is likely to bat at No 4. Duffy probably has first dibs as the back-up opener. He is an aggressive player and has performed well for his club side, Kaikorai.

''He has scored a lot of club runs and we just want to have a wee bit of a look at him in terms of the next step up,'' coach Vaughn Johnson said.

''It is the same with Brad. He has been part of our development programme for the last two years and has scored a lot of club runs.''

Rodden typically plays in the middle order and with more finesse than power.

''He is a worker of the ball ... whereas Ryan is a more aggressive-type of player.''

Johnson said there was also an opportunity for some of the back-up bowlers to step up.

Ryan Duffy
Ryan Duffy
Left-arm seamer Blair Soper took 12 first-class wickets in his debut season, including five for 76 against Wellington. But Johnson said he still had some work to do to cement a spot in the team. Veteran left-armer Bradley Scott is training with the squad but will not be considered for first-class games ''at this stage''.

''In terms of one-day cricket, he is still an option.''

Otago has played a lot of twenty20 cricket in the past six weeks and Johnson said it was important the team used the warm-up game to get back into the rhythm of first-class cricket.

• A blazing innings from short-form specialist Aaron Finch was not enough to deliver Australia victory in the opening match of its limited overs tour of India, in Rajkot, AAP reports.

Instead it was a stunning effort from India's comeback kid Yuvraj Singh which allowed the home side to win the one-off T20 game, chasing down Australia's target of 202 with two balls to spare.

But if not for one crucial moment falling in India's favour, Australian captain George Bailey felt his side would have finished in front.

Singh flicked a Clint McKay delivery off his pads and seemingly over the fence. Shane Watson, fielding on the deep square leg boundary, attempted to throw the ball and regather in the field of play but he was unable to plant his feet inside the rope before regathering the ball.

After being sent in, Australia posted 201 for seven on the back of an excellent 89 from Finch, who was ably supported with cameos from Glenn Maxwell (27 off 13) and new cap Nic Maddinson (34 off 16).


Otago Volts
First squad

Aaron Redmond, Neil Broom, Michael Bracewell, Ryan Duffy, Brad Rodden, Sam Wells, Derek de Boorder, Mark Craig, Ian Butler, Nick Beard, Blair Soper, Jacob Duffy, Iain Robertson, Sam Blakely.


 

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