KEY POINTS:
If you had to pick your best tri-series combination at the halfway point of the competition, probably the biggest surprise is that it wouldn't be completely filled by Australians.
The world champions may have swept all before them in their first four outings of the tournament, but they certainly haven't reached invincible status yet, and couldn't claim to be problem-free as they approach their defence of the World Cup.
Paradoxically, England and New Zealand have looked about as threatening as a Brussels sprout during the first half of their campaign but can still look forward with a degree of optimism after some outstanding contributions from a few.
Australia's biggest concerns, apart from the meanderings of their oddball coach, is that they still haven't found a genuine successor to ditched opening batsman Simon Katich, having trialled Matthew Hayden without success so far.
Neither could they be completely happy with a spin and slow-bowling attack that relies on the sometime off-breaks of Andrew Symonds, the constant wrong-'uns of Cameron White or the as-yet unseen chinamen of Brad Hogg.
Hogg would be the pick of the trio but clearly doesn't carry the confidence of his selectors, and Symonds and White appear modest fare for an upcoming World Cup that will be played on mostly virgin pitches.
Australia, though, aren't alone in their hunt for an established opening batting partner for the cyclonic Adam Gilchrist, who - as is his wont these days - walks into the all-star side after posting two half-centuries in four innings.
England's Andrew Strauss cannot buy a run, Mal Loye was promising against Australia without cashing in, and New Zealand's openers can look back at successive first wicket partnerships of 5, 26, 5 and 5.
Faced with such a barren range of options, your guest selector has decided to look outside the specialists in the hope of finding someone who could justify a gamble, and believes he may have a solution in New Zealand's Ross Taylor.
The fifth highest run-scorer in the series after beginning with a lightning 84 against Australia at Hobart, Taylor doesn't quite have the credentials to force his way into the middle-order, but is probably as well equipped as anyone for a makeshift role at top.
His bright but brief 26 at Sydney last weekend, when he coped magnificently with Brett Lee thunderbolts that were sometimes eclipsing the 155km/h mark, showed he at last has the time to play the best in the world.
Neither New Zealand nor England have batted with any assurance so far, and it should come as no surprise that Australians dominate the top-order, just as they do the eleven - with a total of six representatives sprinkled through the team.
Ricky Ponting would bat at No 3 and captain the side on the back of his average of 48.50; Michael Clarke - with Gilchrist the only player to have scored two half-centuries (no one has made a century) - would be at No 4, and Michael Hussey would oversee proceedings at No 5.
They call Hussey "Mr Cricket" over here, not to mention the best "finisher" in the world, having taken over the mantle from the now-retired Michael Bevan. Hussey normally bats at No 6 for Australia, but will be asked to shuffle up one place in the all-star side, in the interests of team balance.
Symonds will be devastated to discover that he hasn't been selected in this combination. His 111 runs at 37.00 have been scored at a brisk clip and he has the ability to bowl flat off-spinners and medium-pace trundlers depending on the match conditions.
But he wasn't required - simply because Daniel Vettori is twice the spinner, and there's plenty of pace bowling options on offer in the final XI, without having to draft in a player who isn't quite as good as his rivals with bat or ball.
Andrew Flintoff, who has so far scored 155 runs at 77.50 and taken six wickets at 25.16, would snatch his place instead, coming in at No 6 to add all the firepower Symonds might have brought, while offering far more in terms of a front-line bowling option.
In a controversial move, your sole adjudicator has rushed Jacob Oram in at No 7, reasoning that his man-of-the-match performance against England at Adelaide was justification enough for inclusion, despite the big all-rounder playing only one game.
As suggested earlier, Vettori would be included as the sole spinner, having taken four wickets in his most recent match, against England on Tuesday night, and proven himself as one of the most economical bowlers in the competition.
The three specialist pace bowlers picked - Nathan Bracken, James Anderson and Glenn McGrath - are sitting at the top of the wicket-taking list with eight scalps apiece, and have comfortably beaten off the challenges from contenders such as Shane Bond, Stuart Clark, Brett Lee, James Franklin and Mark Gillespie.
Bracken offers the left-arm variation, Anderson will take advantage of any swing on offer, and McGrath adds to the attack the most clinically accurate pace bowling in the world, as demonstrated by his eight wickets at just 11.00.
