New Zealand trio fit to tour
New Zealand have been boosted by the news that Daryl Tuffey, Shane Bond and Nathan Astle all passed fitness tests and are available for the forthcoming tour of England
Wisden Cricinfo staff
24-Apr-2004
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Bond is such a key figure in New Zealand's next 12 months of international cricket that he will not be placed at undue risk during the tour of England, which starts with a match against British Universities on May 3. He is returning after suffering a stress fracture in his back and is not regarded as a certainty for selection in the side for the first Test starting at Lord's on May 20. He passed a final fitness test at New Zealand Cricket's High Performance Centre at Lincoln University, near Christchurch.
Bond was tested handling a gradually increased bowling load to see if he could maintain the technical changes that had been made to his action in order for him to have a longer career at international level. Astle was tested in a match situation and his knees, both of which have been operated on in the last 12 months, responded well. Tuffey, who had a knee problem during much of the last
southern hemisphere summer, was tested in the bowling spells and rest periods that he could expect in a match, and he also came through that well.
John Bracewell, the New Zealand coach, reinforced the point that Bond was seen as going through a 12-month rehabilitation, and if that meant he was considered too fragile to be risked in the three-Test series, then he wouldn't be.
Such has been the impact Bond has made in his 10-Test international career that he has already taken on a newspaper column in New Zealand for his home town newspaper in Christchurch, The Press, while the cricket community is
waiting with bated breath to see if he can regain anything like his former pace.
New Zealanders have become cautious, and rightly so, in their expectations of their faster bowlers. After injuries have denied them players reaching their maximum utility, like Geoff Allott, Dion Nash, Chris Cairns and Simon Doull,
they have every reason to be wary.
But they also know that Bond, in full cry, is a rare sight
and a welcome opportunity to dish out something in return to
what has been delivered to New Zealand without too much
reply for many years.
Bond is in no doubt of his readiness for action. He has been on a strictly managed build-up in New Zealand and completed the last part of an intensive
fitness test programme today. "I'm not going to get too carried away. I've got to stay patient and remind myself of the longer term
implications of my return," he said. "But it is hard not to run in and
give it everything. We've got three games before the first
Test, and it will be up to the management what role they
have planned for me," he said.
As part of his rehabilitation, Bond has been working on
changes to his technique to lessen the torque on his body
during delivery. He has been monitored by video analysis
every time he has bowled during his recovery and he has been
assessed on three-dimensional testing facilities, similar to
those at the University of Western Australia where Muttiah
Muralitharan and Shoaib Akhtar were assessed, at the
University of Auckland.
Wellington coach Vaughn Johnson is traveling with the New
Zealand team as an assistant to John Bracewell and he will
be keeping a close watch on Bond, and the other members of
the New Zealand pace attack.
"Shane is happy where he is technically," said Bracewell, who will be keen to use Bond's pace on England's early season wickets. They leave for England on Tuesday, and the first of three Tests begins at Lord's on May 20.
"Traditionally at this time of year in England the wickets are fresh, grass-covered and conducive to seam and swing bowling," added Bracewell, who has gained plenty of experience as coach of Gloucestershire. "For this reason we have opted for one specialist spin bowler only."
That spinner is Daniel Vettori, who made his Test debut against England as an 18-year-old in 1996-97. He also played a key part in New Zealand's victories on their last tour of England in 1999. Their 2-1 series win condemned England to the bottom of the world rankings.
New Zealand squad Stephen Fleming (capt), Nathan Astle, Shane Bond, Chris Cairns, Chris Martin, Kyle Mills, Brendon McCullum, Craig McMillan, Jacob Oram, Michael Papps, Mark Richardson, Scott Styris, Daryl Tuffey, Daniel Vettori