Cricket: Hussain predicts tight battle

By TERRY MADDAFORD

England captain Nasser Hussain, pleased with his team's dramatic come-from-behind drawn one-day international series in India, is not under-rating New Zealand.

"To go to India and come away 3-3 was a very good result in front of crowds up to 90,000," he said on his team's arrival in Auckland yesterday.

"But we are now looking at the series here - tests and one-day internationals - as being between two closely-matched teams.

"New Zealand are on the up. They have a good captain and to play the way they have in the tests and one-dayers in Australia is very impressive.

"We have a core of players with us who have been here before but we have to get used to the conditions after playing our recent cricket in Zimbabwe and on the sub-continent."

He described England and New Zealand as similar sides, with no superstars, at a similar level in world cricket.

Asked if he and his players would be watching today's one-day international between New Zealand and South Africa, he said golf rather than cricket might be the priority.

But he said that young fast bowler Shane Bond had drawn some interest.

England had not seen him in action and would be looking out for video footage of him.

Coach Duncan Fletcher said he did not know whether all players would play in the one-day games against Northern Districts on Friday and Sunday.

"We are taking each game as it comes," said Fletcher. "Maybe some players will not play."

Of more of a concern was that his players, buoyed by their drawn series in India, might relax on the two-month tour.

Fletcher expects extrovert allrounder Andrew Flintoff, who thumped a crucial 40 and grabbed three wickets in the series-squaring win at Mumbai on Monday, to continue to progress.

"We had him in the team three years ago," said Fletcher. "We have stuck with him and he has come through."

The team spent last night in Auckland and travel to Hamilton today to prepare for Friday's day-night game and the day game on Sunday.

The first of the five one-day internationals will be played in Christchurch next Wednesday.

The three tests will be played in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland between March 13 and April 3.