Nottinghamshire Director of Cricket Mick Newell has highlighted Brendon McCullum as New Zealand’s biggest threat ahead of the Black Caps’ visit to Trent Bridge in June.
New Zealand will face England in a Royal London One-Day International in Nottinghamshire on Wednesday 17 June and Newell believes the contest could hinge on McCullum’s contribution.
“Brendan is such an explosive batsman in all forms of the game that he is capable of taking things away from the opposition very quickly,” said Newell.
“That ability to accelerate the run rate can is often the difference between two teams and very few players do that with his levels of consistency.”
Newell was part of the deliberations that saw Eoin Morgan succeed Alastair Cook as England’s One-Day captain as preparations for the ICC Cricket World Cup gather pace.
The relative merits of England and New Zealand are hard to distinguish with England’s new look side prone to inconsistency while New Zealand have never reached the final of cricket’s global showpiece.
“New Zealand have a more settled and established group of players and they have the advantage of having been together for a period of time,” said Newell.
“This group of England players have come together relatively recently so it is harder to place too much expectation.
“It is a younger side than that which has represented England in recent years and we hope that they can become the surprise package of the tournament.”
Trent Bridge hosts the fourth Royal London One-Day International between England and New Zealand on Wednesday 17 June. Don't miss the chance to take in what promises to be an absorbing contest and secure your seat now.