KEY POINTS:
If Jacob Oram's medical advisers believe his injury problems are a direct result of his bowling workload, then the time has come for him to retire from the bowling crease and also to thank his lucky stars that he can still play for New Zealand.
Oram is our only true allrounder although Daniel Vettori is fast approaching this status. Oram is capable of selection as either a batting or bowling specialist.
The great thing about his current situation is that it is his batting that is quickly becoming his strongest suit. The ability Oram has with the bat in all forms of the game is undeniable and simply cannot be lost in the pursuit of a few overs from him.
It seems like a straightforward decision but in reality I imagine it is a very tough one for him and New Zealand to make.
As an allrounder, Oram provides options when it comes to balance. He enables the team to strengthen the bowling resources, be it towards spin or pace, without weakening the batting strength.
With Oram's overs, an extra batsman can be added without under-manning the bowling attack. I can guarantee the versatility Oram the allrounder provides is highly valued by Vettori, John Bracewell and the
selectors and not something they would let go lightly.
Oram himself won't let go lightly. He's in the top couple of allrounders in the world _ that would give him a certain satisfaction, not to mention a rather tasty Indian Premier League contract.
It would be hard to walk away from the rush the allrounder must get from playing a total part in a cricket match. It must feel a bit like cutting off a leg and hoping you can still be the man you were. The total impact you can make on a game is reduced and if your one useful limb fails then, on that day, you could feel like a passenger.
It's a different mentality altogether to play the game with only the one batting or bowling impact on a match. The effect of stepping away from an allrounder role would not necessarily mean Oram's batting skill would automatically improve with the extra degree of specialisation.
He would need to make a mental shift and there are no guarantees he would succeed. However, it is far more desirable we are able to find this out rather than have Oram forced from the game altogether if he does not address his injury susceptibility soon enough.
There may exist the option to reduce his bowling work load by restricting his overs to ODI and Twenty/20 cricket but why take the risk? To maintain some sort of bowling proficiency takes practice and thus net bowling too.
Cricket fans in this country have been denied their fair share of Shane Bond, Chris Cairns, Dion Nash and Geoff Allott. I hope Oram will not be the next.
