Mark Richardson: Best team on field but can't give best shot

Let's be clear about this: I think the best XI we can select, outside of injuries, was on the pitch last night. But - and it's a big but - we do not have a plan B.

Look at Australia - their domestic cricket is a good breeding ground. If you score runs consistently there, you have a good chance of being promoted to the international team if one of the incumbents is out of form. That's how come Mike Hussey - a very good 29-year-old batsman who has scored truckloads of first-class centuries - hasn't had more international cricket. It's been tough to get into such a good side.

But when the selectors replaced Darren Lehmann with Hussey, they did so with the knowledge that they were bringing in a man who would perform at international level. New Zealand can not say the same.

I'd go further - we are loathe to promote good performers at domestic level to the international side. Why? because the cricket played at domestic level does not necessarily mean that good performers there will also be good performers internationally. That's why players like Graeme Aldridge and Lance Hamilton are not there.

That's why a batsman like Hamish Marshall is. His record in domestic cricket is dire - but the selectors felt he had the game for internationals. They were right.

But here's where I differ. We must develop our domestic cricket to a level where it feeds our international cricket. Right now, the domestic game does not benefits our international cricket. Look at Michael Papps - a good player who has performed at this level. But he's had only domestic cricket to prepare him for last night and he was underdone.

So, faced with a conviction that our domestic cricket isn't good enough, we select out of form cricketers like some of those we watched last night.

And that's wrong. If you play out-of-form cricketers against a crack team of in-form Australians, well, it can become a men against boys thing.

We have to have a domestic cricket system which feeds and nourishes our national team.

Right now, it may not even be worth sending Daryl Tuffey back into domestic cricket because he will get little out of it. It's the same with Craig McMillan.

But we have no choice. We won't beat teams like Australia until we have a worthwhile domestic system - so we don't have to kept selecting people who are out of form. And we won't beat them until six or seven of our senior players fire at once.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY