Cricket: Michael Bracewell's bowling could be power play for Black Caps at T20 World Cup

Michael Bracewell shone for the Black Caps in the tri-series. Photo / photosport.nz

Gary Stead knows big scores will be required at the T20 World Cup. But the coach is equally sure the Black Caps' run prevention will be pivotal to their chances.

And that idea, set to be tested when their tournament begins against Australia on Saturday, was what made Michael Bracewell's performance in last week's tri-series as timely as it was impressive.

Bracewell debuted in all three formats in the last 12 months, having established himself as one of domestic cricket's premier batting allrounders – a balance made clear when he last season led the Super Smash in runscoring.

But against Pakistan and Bangladesh it was the 31-year-old's bowling that would have raised the selectors' eyebrows, earning player of the series after shutting down the tourists' top orders.

Bracewell hadn't been considered part of the Black Caps' first-choice XI, and pitches across the Tasman could well prove less favourable to his offbreak than what he found at Hagley Oval.

But given his batting ability – a domestic average of 31.8 and strikerate of 134.7 – he looms as a likely replacement for the injured Daryl Mitchell to begin the World Cup. Beyond that, Bracewell will at least provide Stead with a welcome selection headache.

"Michael's been making every post a winner," the coach said. "The thing that stood out most was his ability to bowl through the powerplay.

"You talk about bowling to people like Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan and they're quality players of spin. I think in three of the five games that he played in he had figures of 2-14 or better, which is pretty amazing when you consider they were overs in the powerplay.

"While Michael still considers himself as that batting allrounder, it's nice to see how quickly his bowling is developing."

Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi may be the men sweating that development. The former missed much of the tri-series through paternity leave and a knee niggle, while the latter's mixed week ended with a 25-run over that helped Pakistan lift the trophy.

Sodhi was a mainstay of the side who reached last year's World Cup final and earlier in the series joined Tim Southee in the exclusive 100-wicket club. But although Stead spoke admiringly about his bowling attack's experience, the recent elevation of Finn Allen over Martin Guptill showed that trait would not be decisive in selection.

"T20 cricket has made teams more comfortable in chasing bigger scores," Stead said. "You're going to have to bowl really well if you're defending scores from 150-170 now – that was shown through the tri-series.

"You do need to get a really competitive score but I also really like the balance of what we have through our bowling attack. We have a really experienced bowling attack and there's a lot of faith and trust in guys who have done it over a long period of time."

Conditions are the remaining variable, and the Black Caps could opt for four seamers if Lockie Ferguson and Adam Milne are fully fit. But with Stead describing an "air of anticipation and excitement" around the team, Bracewell has reason to be more excited than most.