KEY POINTS:
New Zealand Cricket's (NZC) selectors have copped criticism from players boss Heath Mills over a lack of compassion shown towards players not selected for the national team.
Mills said standards had slipped at NZC when it came to contacting players who had missed squad selection.
NZPA understands experienced pace bowler Chris Martin was bitterly disappointed at not being contacted ahead of yesterday's announcement of the 14-man squad to tour Australia.
Nineteen-year-old seamer Trent Boult was preferred ahead of Martin in a major surprise.
New Zealand Cricket Players Association executive manager Mills wouldn't name individuals affected but said there had been some "blips" creeping into the system of communication with players.
"It's just a phone call," Mills told NZPA.
"It's important in a team or any other avenue of life, if you want people to play for you or work hard and feel part of your environment. They need good compassionate communication when things don't go their way.
"When a player is dropped, they're hurting. That's when they need our support more than ever. That's when communication has to be at its best."
Mills said recent examples of players with a reasonable expectation of selection not being contacted needed to be addressed.
"It's effectively the same situation as someone losing their job if they miss the side.
"It's an obligation in a professional environment."
Mills said a team environment was not just the group of players on tour at any given time. It also included the 20 NZC-contracted players and others who had played within the last year or so.
"When players miss out, they're not consigned to the dustbin. They're going to be used again and again.
"You've got a team of kids who are trying to gel and it's important to treat with them with compassion when things don't go well."
NZC's new general manager of cricket Geoff Allot has yet to take up his position and Mills believed that had "probably created a big hole".
Sir Richard Hadlee stepped down as selection convener last year, replaced by Glenn Turner, and that had also created some teething problems, Mills believed.
"Clearly we've had a transition in staff who may not have understood what the requirements were in terms of good communication.
"In the last six-seven years in cricket it's been a lot better than it was but just lately there's been a couple of blips.
"We're working on that with New Zealand Cricket and we're going to smooth it out and get it back to where we need to be."
Turner accepted the communication system wasn't perfect but said there had only been isolated glitches, including Martin this week.
"I agree, if someone can reasonably expect to be in a side then they ought to get a call," he told NZPA.
"It then becomes a matter of opinion how far you go down that path.
"We make a real effort to do it but the system's not perfect."
The day before any squad announcement, Turner compiles a list of players to be contacted and shares the call workload with others at NZC. All players are advised to be available on their cellphones.
Two State Shield matches on Wednesday meant messages had to be left with several players, who were asked to ring back.
Turner said the system broke down as the person who was asked to ring Martin didn't do so.
"It has happened where we have meant to ring somebody and we haven't," he said.
"Chris was actually on our list and we didn't get to him.
"I've called him since and we've talked about it. He's quite happy with the call and what was said."
- NZPA
