Adam Parore: Feeling short-changed by cricket season

Australia have gone, the season is done and frankly I'm feeling rather under-whelmed and short-changed by it all.

The Pakistan series contained too much average test cricket for my liking. They were an insipid bunch whom New Zealand should have beaten rather than drawn the three-test series, and playing Bangladesh simply does not do New Zealand's cricket much good.

The Australian series was pretty memorable but it was the one part of the home summer which felt that way.

I suspect New Zealand are going to have to get used to playing more often against the "have-nots", such as Pakistan and Bangladesh - both of whom we play again next season - rather than the "haves" which is a shame for both the New Zealand cricket public and the state of our national side.

You want to test yourself against the best, and I believe we're not going to have many chances to do that in the immediate future.

As for New Zealand, there were only two problems for much of the summer - the batting and the bowling.

The fielding and wicketkeeping was fine. The top order remains a worry. It is a historic problem and I don't see an immediate solution. I don't think we're going backwards, but we're treading water and I'm not sure where the fix will come from.

When Shane Bond and Iain O'Brien departed from the test side in quick order, New Zealand took a serious hit. New ball bowling will remain a problem because there is no obvious replacement of the same quality.

That brings us to Chris Martin. He is 35 and was off his game for much of the season. Should the selectors stick with him or punt for the future?

My preference would be to stay with him. He is the country's best new ball bowler and I would try and get him up to speed and aim for one last season.

That said, if the selectors decided that with Bangladesh, followed by a full tour of India and then a home series against Pakistan ahead of the 50-over World Cup next season, the time was right to look to the future I could not argue too hard against it.

But it's a good bet that issue will be at the top of the agenda when the selectors meet to prepare for the months ahead.

As for Dan Vettori, he is one area of the ship which is not under stress. Other parts are snapping, but I've found the heavier the workload the better he responds.

He should drop back to No 8 in the order, though. When Jesse Ryder returns, put him at No 5, bump Martin Guptill back to No 3 and you have a better feel to the batting lineup, perhaps with an opening for the highly promising Kane Williamson at No 6.

Domestically it was heartening to see the crowds return for the HRV Cup and the one-day competition.

Having the country's best players in the Twenty20 competition with overseas imports worked a treat. And there's a clear message in that for New Zealand Cricket.