Cricket writer Adrian Seconi looks at how the Volts have been able to turn their fortunes around following a disappointing twenty20 campaign.
No I in team
Veteran Otago seamer Bradley Scott probably summed it up best when he said somebody different was stepping up each game.
The Black Caps' busy schedule has stripped Otago of a lot of its star power which has provided opportunities for others to shine.
Otago has been forced to introduce some new faces such as the madly-talented Josh Finnie, while some familiar faces have been cast in unfamiliar roles. All-rounder Sam Wells fits into the latter camp.
It is a shame he will probably drop back down the order when test opener Hamish Rutherford returns from national duty.
Game plan
Fans need to think of one-day cricket as two separate games these days. There is the first 30-35 overs where teams conserve wickets and are quite happy to meander along safe in the knowledge the last 15-20 overs can yield an enormous amount of runs.
The game becomes a twenty20 match at that point and Otago has executed the plan fairly well with the top order largely setting good platforms.
When it backfired against Wellington, Nathan McCullum came to the rescue with a maiden one-day hundred and combined in a fabulous partnership with Iain Robertson.
The Duffman
Pace bowler Jacob Duffy burst on to the domestic scene with three for 19 in twenty20 against Northern Districts in 2012 but struggled in this summer's tournament.
The 20-year-old was returning from ankle injury and was just not bowling with as much rhythm or hitting the crease as hard as he would like.
But that has all changed with a few month's cricket. He is the leading wicket-taker with 13 scalps at an excellent average of 16. His economy rate of 5.69 is very respectable too.
Brace yourself
Michael Bracewell is probably the next Bracewell to be named in the Black Caps. Our guess is he will be picked as a back-up opener for New Zealand's tour of the United Kingdom later this year. But in the meantime the punishing left-hander is relishing his role at No 3 in the Otago top order.
He crunched four sixes and 10 fours in a 48-ball innings of 83 in the Volts' five-wicket win against Northern Districts on Sunday and scored 98 against the same opponent in Alexandra.
Unheralded
In the absence of guys such as Nick Beard, Jimmy Neesham, Hamish Rutherford, Mark Craig, Brendon McCullum and Jesse Ryder, Otago's depth has been sorely tested. But the incoming players have done more than just make up the numbers.
Robertson combined in a key partnership with Nathan McCullum. Finnie has played a couple of quality cameos including keeping his cool to swat 18 from nine deliveries in a last-over thriller against Northern Districts.
And Ryan Duffy performed admirably while standing in for Aaron Redmond at the top of the order.
Leading performers
ODI stars
Most runs (top five)
George Worker (CD) 374
Jamie How (CD) 294
Martin Guptill (Auck) 278
Henry Nicholls (Cant) 264
Craig Cachopa (Auck) 231
Most wickets (top five)
Jacob Duffy (Ot) 13
Mitchell McClenaghan (Auck) 11
Andrew Mathieson (CD) 10
Brent Arnel (Well) 9
Adam Milne (CD) 8
Otago's run home
Remaining round-robin games
January 10: v Wellington, Basin Reserve
January 14: v Canterbury, University Oval
January 18: v Central Districts, University Oval
January 21: v Canterbury, Rangiora
January 24: Qualifier 1 v Qualifier 2
January 24: Qualifier 3 v Qualifier 4
January 28: Loser 1v2 v Winner 3v4
February 1: Final
