Cricket: Howell shows why he's the top domestic one-day batsman

Llorne Howell has had a lean time in run-scoring this season, but he is not the leading batsman in New Zealand domestic one-day cricket for nothing.

His paucity of runs ended on Eden Park's main oval yesterday when he scored an unbeaten 62 while Auckland passed Northern Districts' 133 with seven wickets in hand and with a bonus-point for winning inside 40 overs.

The 31-year-old scored his 50 from 62 balls with nine boundaries.

Howell, together with a clutch of other players, is poised to join Mark Bailey, Grant Bradburn, Mark Douglas and Richard Petrie in the 100 club for domestic one-day appearances. He has 97.

He is also close to achieving 3000 runs.

Northern Districts were bolstered by Hamish Marshall's arrival from the Black Caps' camp in Wellington 2 1/2 hours before the start of play.

The young batsman said he was tired from New Zealand's last-ditch win over Pakistan but he was nevertheless eager to play, especially with his home-town fan club sitting in the stand.

Sadly for the fans he lasted only for short time, scoring six before being caught by Auckland keeper, Reece Young from Tama Canning's bowling.

Northern started badly, losing Nick Horsley for 14 and then James Marshall for five, both bowled by Kerry Walmsley.

From then, it was a battle and although their middle-order of Matthew Hart, Joseph Yovich and Grant Robinson stuck around for a while, once they were gone, Walmsley cleaned up the tail without too much bother.

Walmsley, who bowled superbly on a lifeless wicket, finished with four for 24 from 9.3 overs and he was well supported by the rest of the Auckland bowling attack, especially Canning and Brooke Walker, who both kept a tight lid on the Northern batting.

Young kept exceptionally well in taking two diving catches to dismiss Marshall and Graeme Aldridge.

There was a spring in the step of the Auckland fielding, with Craig Pryor taking a fine catch to send Matthew Hart on his way and Tim McIntosh, brought in to replace Lou Vincent who suffered a finger injury on Friday, running out Robbie Hart for two with a direct hit from side on to the wicket.

McIntosh opened Auckland's innings with Howell, but was dismissed for a duck when he snicked Aldridge to keeper Robbie Hart.

Matt Horne and Howell added 65 before Horne was undone by a shooter from Gareth West that cannoned into his stumps.

Rob Nicol went leg-before to Ian Butler for five before Aaron Barnes came on to score a bright, unbeaten 31, including four boundaries taken from West's fifth over, the 22nd of the match.

* In Waikanae, Wellington thrashed Central Districts by eight wickets.

* New Zealand's cricketers admit the Pakistanis still have them stumped as they try to crack the mysteries of reverse swing.

Pakistan fly home today after a typically up and down tour which saw them win the test series 1-0 but lose the one-day series 1-4.

But the indelible mark from the tourists will again be their mastery of reverse swing which speedsters Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Sami used to series-winning effect in the tests.

Having also seen it during the one-dayers, the New Zealanders have been working overtime at practice to try to copy the Pakistan techniques.

The biggest headache is how to work on the ball legally to get the non-shiny side into such a worn state that it actually helps the ball swing the other way.

"We're still a long way from unravelling the puzzle but at least we're ticking off some areas to look at," Fleming said.

"It's a key weapon if we get it right, with batting and bowling because we can train against it," he said.

Reverse swing has long been a domain of the Pakistan pacemen.

- NZPA