Cricket: Bennett confident he has the goods

Canterbury pace bowler Hamish Bennett. Photo / Geoff Sloan

Canterbury pace bowler Hamish Bennett is young in age but not in terms of cricket experience, which he hopes to use to his advantage during his first tour with New Zealand next month.

The 23-year-old was included in the New Zealand squad named yesterday for a five-match one-day international series in Bangladesh on October 5-17, a surprise selection not only to followers of the game, but to Bennett himself.

"I was pretty stunned," Bennett told NZPA from his Timaru home today.

"(Coach) Mark Greatbatch texted me and told me to ring him and I thought it was going to be about the New Zealand A tour to Zimbabwe.

"After chatting away for about 10 minutes he asked me if I wanted to go to Bangladesh. You're not going to say no to that, are you?"

Bennett's one-day domestic record is fair but not outstanding.

Since his debut for Canterbury as a raw, 18-year-old straight out of the New Zealand Cricket academy in 2005, he has taken 24 wickets in 21 one-day matches at an average of 37.29 and an economy rate of nearly six runs an over.

He appears more suited to the longer version of the game - he has taken 99 wickets in 33 first-class matches - although injuries have prevented the strapping right-armer from playing more in both forms.

Greatbatch pointed to an impressive tour of Australia with the A team during the winter, along with a high arm action, ability to swing the ball and a knack of getting good players out, as the reasons behind Bennett's selection.

"I've been lucky enough to have been on a lot of those winter trips for New Zealand teams and I think this selection is showing they are starting to pay off," Bennett said.

"My fitness is good, I've been training in Canterbury and doing weights and running and I'm raring to go."

Bennett said he had gained a lot of experience during the past five years, not only from playing but by talking to other bowlers.

He credited former New Zealand speedster and Canterbury teammate Shane Bond as being key in his development.

"You always hear the old cliche of guys saying 'if only I knew what I know now when I was 20'. You can learn so much off other guys and I think I have done that," he said.

"Not only guys like Bondy (Shane Bond) and Cairnsy (Chris Cairns), who have played a lot at the top level, but the likes of Michael Sharpe and Stu Roberts, who were workhorses for years for Canterbury, have a lot of knowledge."

Bennett acknowledged the longer form of cricket was more his forte but he was confident in his ability to perform at one-day level.

"There are better crowds and atmospheres and you tend to get more fizzed up," he said.

"It can be hit or miss - you can bowl well and get spanked or bowl poorly and get three wickets - but I'll just to what I do, hit a length as hard as I can and just put in as much effort as possible.

"I'm a bowler who likes to bang it in at a length and see what happens."

- NZPA