Cricket: Watling wants to make keeper's spot his own

B.J Watling. Photo / Ron Burgin

BJ Watling's "shock" rise in the wicketkeeping pecking order for New Zealand has been in the works for a year.

The Northern Districts' 26-year-old said he was asked about the prospect of taking the gloves in test cricket to fill the hole left by Brendon McCullum after he gave up wicketkeeping duties because of persistent knee and back problems.

"Maybe a year ago, when Mark Greatbatch was coach and Roger Mortimer was around, there was chat about it then," said Watling.

"And it's something I've had to obviously think long and hard about and make quite a drastic change from opening the batting to keeping and batting in the middle order. It's been in the thoughts for a while and I've done a lot of work on my keeping in the last year or so. Just without as much game time as I would've liked."

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Following Reece Young's dumping from the national side on Monday, Watling has been given the opportunity to impress New Zealand coach John Wright with his work behind the stumps when he takes the gloves in the three-day tour match against a Zimbabwe XI starting in Gisborne on Saturday.

Central Districts' Kruger van Wyk has been named alongside Watling in a 12-strong squad for the one-off test against Zimbabwe in Napier next week but it appears the job is Watling's to lose.

He rejected suggestions he was a "part-timer" with the gloves, despite being second to Peter McGlashan as Northern Districts' preferred gloveman.

"I'm definitely more than a part-timer. I used to keep a lot at school and actually made ND as a keeper [in 2004] until they asked me to open the batting. So I've done a lot of keeping. I've kept when Pete's been injured and obviously a couple of one-day internationals and Twenty20 internationals. So there is a bit of experience there. Obviously I'd like to have done a lot more."

With McGlashan unlikely to leave Northern Districts, there had been a suggestion Watling could move to Wellington next summer in a bid to forward his career as a keeper-batsman.

Wellington contracted youngster Joe Austin-Smellie two summers ago, but the 22-year-old has been underwhelming in his stint with the gloves and this season has scores of only 0, 5, 0 and 14 in four-day cricket.

Watling refused to confirm or deny that he may be pondering a move to the capital. But he's sure that reverting to wicketkeeper-batsman is his ticket for a lengthy spell in the New Zealand set-up.

Wright recently indicated his desire to bat Daniel Vettori at No 6 and play four bowlers, meaning his keeper will slot in at seven and be required to contribute with the bat.

The South African-born right-hander has kept wicket in the past two domestic Twenty20 games for Northern but will miss their final match against Otago tomorrow as he joins the New Zealand XI for the tour match.