As Captain, Coach, Selector and Official Spokesmen. Daniel Vettori has a lot on his shoulders. Surely the workload and responsibility are too much for just one man? It would appear not.
Since officially taking over, Vettori has led the Black Caps to an ODI Series win against a good Pakistan side in Dubai, and has also won the first test against Pakistan.
As well as his constant threat with the ball, Vettori scored a crucial 99 runs in the first innings to set the victory up. His captaincy was brilliant, fighting back from the brink of defeat.
We can assume the problems with former coach Andy Moles began long before he left and all reports suggested Vettori had been doing much of the coaching well before it was made official.
It’s probably only fair that Vettori be given credit for the Black Caps reaching the Champions Trophy final, as Moles departed immediately after.
I doubt many players past or present could pull off such a balancing act, but those of us who have followed Vettori’s career are well aware that he is not only a talented athlete, but a gifted tactician and true scholar of the game.
Of course, we do need a coach. But I see no hurry. Better to find someone good than quickly.
In the meantime, Vettori seems to have everything well in hand, so take your time and choose wisely New Zealand Cricket.
Brian
Guest
I think the modern schedule with IPL, T20 WC only makes things worse for teams like NZ & WI. It increases injuries and tests depth such that NZ miss Bond a lot more than Aus miss Hilfenhaus. Regarding Vettori he's a fantastic cricketer. NZ more of an ODI team, hopefully if Taylor and Ryder fullfill their promise & Oram/Bond stay fit than they can be a threat on turning wickets with Vettori in 2011.
rugbyguy
Roar Pro
yeah thats the problem with New Zealand cricket traditionally speaking we just dont have enough top quality players our victories often have been the result of indivual brillance rather than a good team performance, I will say that in recent times our Bowlers have all chipped in to win some games our batsmen seemed to have lost, We have been blessed with some excellent talent over the years but as you say they had to do most of the work by themselves, I wonder how Martin Crows carreer stats would look if he had more qaulity batting partners
sheek
Guest
It seems you need to be a very special kind of person to be a champion cricketer in a NZ team. Often you have to work your miracles alone, although if you're lucky, you might have a buddy. The great paceman Jack Cowie, who played either side of WW2, had opener Stu Dempster before the war, & left-hander Martin Donnelly after the war. All 3 had too brief careers. In the 50s, batsman Bert Sutcliffe & all-rounder John Reid often worked miracles between the two of them. That other great fast bowler Richard Hadlee firstly had opener Glenn Turner & later batsman Martin Crowe to help him. Poor old Vettori has I guess keeper-batsman Brendon McCullum, & fastman Shane Bond, on the few occasions his body holds together! And guess what? Those 11 players above pretty well make your all-time NZ XI. They really are a special breed.....
davido
Guest
These sort of things tend not to work well in the long run though?