Cricket: African tour chance to groom future players

Kane Williamson will clock up some more captaincy experience on the tour. Photo / Jason Oxenham

Development of players will be a key plank of New Zealand's African safari, starting against Zimbabwe in Harare tomorrow night.

Part of that is out of necessity. No Brendon McCullum, Corey Anderson, Trent Boult and Tim Southee means there must be an eye on the future.

Coach Mike Hesson cited George Worker, the Central Districts lefthander who got his chance when injury counted out promising allrounder Mitchell Santner, and his provincial teammate Ben Wheeler as fitting that bill.

Left-arm seamer Wheeler impressed in the limited-overs leg of the recent tour of England.

"They are trying to make their way in international cricket," Hesson said. "If we are looking ahead to four years' time and the next World Cup this is the perfect opportunity to start that development. Two years ago we did the same with Corey Anderson, James Neesham and Mitch McClenaghan."

It's a big trip for allrounder Neesham, returning from a serious back injury which sidelined him for five months, and wanting to make sure he's in tip top condition for the test tour to Australia later this year.

Middle order aggressor Colin Munro, back in the land of his birth, needs to make a statement over the course of the nine-game tour of Zimbabwe and South Africa. At 28, he averages 27.83 over seven ODIs, and in 13 T20 innings has passed 20 four times, exceeded 30 just once.

The Zimbabwe squad is led by big-hitting allrounder Elton Chigumbura. They have made four changes to their 15-man squad for the first two ODIs against New Zealand including a recall for offspinner John Nyumbu, who became just the second Zimbabwean to take five wickets on test debut, against South Africa in Harare a year ago.

Tall seamer Chris Mpofu, who has looked useful, is back to continue an in-and-out career, as is key batsman Craig Ervine, who averages 33 in ODIs.

Zimbabwe have won just four of 13 ODIs at home against New Zealand, including the most recent, a one-wicket thriller in Bulawayo four years ago.