The Black Caps will take a full-strength squad to Australia for the three-Test series after Trent Boult and Colin de Grandhomme passed fitness tests.
World class seamer Boult (side strain) and allrounder de Grandhomme (abdominal tear) bowled with some intensity at Mount Maunganui’s Bay Oval on Friday.
New Zealand Cricket says the pair trained successfully and they will be on the plane to Perth on Saturday for the first Test starting on Thursday.
Neither player is completely cleared to start the pink ball Test, with coach Gary Stead saying they will need to bowl long stints at practice to prove their readiness.
Both suffered damage in the first Test win over England at Bay Oval two weeks ago. They sat out the drawn second Test in Hamilton.
Boult is regarded as the less likely of the two to win his fitness race, although New Zealand cricket says both are making good progress.
The left-arm new ball specialist has taken 255 scalps at an average of 27.64 and has shone in both pink ball Tests New Zealand have contested.
Big-hitting de Grandhomme has lifted his batting average above 40 and boasts a bowling average below 30.
Riccardo
Roar Rookie
Not sure Paul. I'd be amazed if he's not though.
Paul
Roar Guru
Is Mitchell heading to Perth just in case Riccardo? By the sounds of this piece, these two are likely but not certain to be fit and Mitchell wasn't named in the original squad.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
All the best to both teams for a tough contest. Special appreciation to the Kiwi fire fighters helping in NSW at the moment. Have just left my CC home as a voluntary evacuation in the last hour. Wow, all the FF personnel are a godsend.
Jeff
Roar Rookie
We only have Forecast for first two days. 40C each day. Day one will probably stay like that till early evening. Day 2 maybe a change round mid afternoon ? Hard to know yet.
Rest your best bowler on the wicket most likely to be helpful? Yeah nah.
Micko
Roar Rookie
What's the forecast temps for the game though?
Targa
Roar Rookie
Really need to win the toss and bat for 120+ overs to tire out the Aussie bowlers and keep ours fresh
Jeff
Roar Rookie
How will the Black Caps handle the heat? 42C in Perth today, 41C yesterday. 40C for Day 1 and who knows what the forecast for Day 2 will bring. And it's only 40 minutes scheduled play after sunset, so don't get too excited by the prospect of cooler conditions at night!
Riccardo
Roar Rookie
Would like to see Boult rested for Perth and Ferguson debuted. And maybe Mitchell to replace de GrandDesigns too. They're vital cogs and summer has just arrived. And Mitchell should excel in Perth anyway...