Cricket: Andrew set to pen another chapter

By RICHARD BOOCK

EAST LONDON - As long as his body can hold together, replacement paceman Andrew Penn seems set to make his test debut against South Africa at Port Elizabeth.

The Wellington seamer made the most of his opportunities while taking five for 38 against Border yesterday morning and appears likely to edge Daryl Tuffey out of the lineup for the second test, which starts at St George's Park on Thursday.

Tuffey's lack of consistency has been one of the major disappointments on this tour, and his three wickets in the second innings of the first test may not be enough to keep the selectors interested after Penn's exploits against Border.

So often the back-up option for New Zealand, Penn took centre stage yesterday as he cut a swathe through the opposition's first-innings batting lineup, ending with five for 38 as Border were bowled out for just 73.

Initially selected to join the tour at the end of the one-day series, Penn had the misfortune to suffer an injury just before departure, and managed to make the trip only as a replacement for Scott Styris, who returned home after undergoing a knee cartilage operation.

But Penn seemed to find reasonable pace yesterday and adjusted quickly to the shorter length required in the Republic, claiming the majority of his five wickets with an accurate bouncer, the effectiveness of which even surprised him.

"I was surprised with how poorly the batsmen played the short ball," he said afterwards. "They must face a lot of pace bowling over here and they're always playing on fast, bouncy decks, yet they didn't seem to have much idea about the short one.

"I certainly didn't think there was anything special about my bowling. It was just the way things turned out."

A bowler with a reputation for moving the ball away from the right-hander, Penn has been forced to sacrifice most of his swing in his efforts to get more bounce and pace out of the pitch, but believes his style can accommodate the adjustment without losing any penetration.

While he bowled with a supportive brace yesterday and had to cope with a degree of pain afterwards, he said the side strain was improving and it should not hold him back from being available for the test match at Port Elizabeth.

"The body's getting there, it's getting there," he smiled. "There's still a little pain but I'm still managing the injury at this stage and I'm confident it's going to hold up for the coming games."

Of his need to adjust, he said: "Over here, you can't bowl that fuller New Zealand length because South African batsmen just climb into their drives, so you're forced to hit the deck harder and bit shorter. It's not how I usually bowl, but that's international cricket."