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CANBERRA - Daniel Vettori admits he "felt old" for the first time as his younger cricket teammates teased him about turning 30 on Tuesday.
And the New Zealand captain is bracing for an even more significant life milestone which could disrupt his involvement in the much-awaited Indian tour.
Vettori's wife Mary is expecting their first child at the end of March, in the midst of the three-test series against the touring Indians.
As the due date nears and excitement builds, the prospective dad hopes Vettori junior shows a knack for timing his or her run.
"We have to just plan for it, the selectors are aware of it and we'll just make the call as we go along. Hopefully (the baby) arrives between test matches and we'll see how we go," Vettori said.
"It's part of international cricket these days where guys go off and leave when their children are being born. I'd love to be around when it happens. We've just got to wait and see, it may all come together and I won't miss any cricket."
The second test in Napier is scheduled to finish on March 30, with the third and final test starting in Wellington on April 3 before Vettori rejoins the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Vettori's vice-captain Brendon McCullum was given permission to leave the 2004 tour of England early to attend the birth of his son, and Vettori recalled on the same tour England captain Michael Vaughan dashed from Headingley test late in the day's play when his wife went into labour.
Birth permutations aside, Vettori said he marked his 30th with a low-key night with teammates at their Canberra hotel after flying in from Auckland earlier on Tuesday.
"It was a quiet one. I think most people who turn 30 are reasonably circumspect at that time.
"We had a couple of quiet beers and Tim Southee kept calling me 40. He's the first person ever to make me feel old."
But that doesn't mean Vettori - who debuted just days after his 18th birthday against England in 1996-97 - is planning international retirement any time soon.
Having told the Herald on Sunday earlier this month he would look to hand over the captaincy after the 2011 World Cup, he maintained yesterday he hoped to play on after that under the leadership of someone else.
"I'm excited by the team that's been put together slowly. I've stated I don't want to necessarily captain the team for years on end but I'm pretty keen on playing for a while.
"I feel like this group has got the makings of a side that can win the 2011 World Cup and it's about us actually going out there and proving we can do it.
"I'll be 32 when that comes around and I still hope to have a few years left after that."
That means records will keep tumbling for the left-arm spinner who is bowling as well as ever, and continues to trade places with Australian Nathan Bracken for the current title of world's No 1 bowler in one-day international cricket.
His 226 wickets from 229 ODIs is a New Zealand record, 26 clear of Chris Harris, while in test cricket Vettori is 15 wickets short of becoming the second New Zealander to pass 300.
If he played for another four or five years, Sir Richard Hadlee's record of 431 scalps would loom into Vettori's view.
- NZPA
