Nash's agony seemingly never-ending
By Richard Boock
From the New Zealand Herald, 11 January 2002

Dion Nash's summer of discontent continued yesterday when he was put on the doubtful list for tonight's tri-series opener against Australia.

The New Zealand allrounder suffered a slight groin strain during the so-called warm-up match in Brisbane this week and, given his injury-riddled career to date, he seems likely to be afforded more time before returning to match-play.

Yesterday, New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming would not rule Nash out of the playing X1.

But he said enough to suggest there were grave doubts over the wisdom of including him so soon after the injury.

"Dion's improving," he said. "Whether he's improving quickly enough I'm not yet sure.

"We'll look at that on the day, but with a long series coming up we may have to be a bit cautious with him."

If Nash does not play, it will probably mean a call-up for Auckland utility Andre Adams, who made his debut in Sharjah last year and can play a similar type of role to Nash.

It will also mean a continuation of a wretched summer for 30-year-old Nash, who overcame chronic back problems only to be dogged by unrelated ailments and a much-publicised code-of-conduct breach last month.

Invalided home from several tours in past seasons, Nash played his long-awaited first test against Australia at Brisbane before Christmas, but broke down in the first innings with a stomach strain and was later ruled out for the rest of the tour.

Having recovered from that injury, he then ran foul of the code-of-conduct commissioner after a run-in against Otago at Carisbrook, eventually being given a three-game suspension which badly affected his tri-series buildup.

Nash was not quite himself at the Gabba on Tuesday evening, possibly because of his lack of match-play, his groin strain, the furnace-type temperatures or a combination of all three - leaving the tour selectors jittery over his prospects for tonight.

The other concern in the New Zealand camp involves the recovery of fast-bowler Shane Bond, who suffered from heat-stress at Brisbane and had to be rehydrated courtesy of an intravenous drip.

The Canterbury right-armer seemed to have more colour in his face yesterday, but must still be in doubt for tonight's match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which is expected to be played in 30 degree-plus temperatures, and in front of a 55,000-strong crowd.

If he is left out and Nash is deemed unfit, New Zealand will have to play Wellington left-armer James Franklin, himself a late replacement for Kyle Mills.

Fleming emphasised that there was never any suggestion that New Zealand would use saline drips in the dressing-room to rehydrate players, as reported in some Australian newspapers yesterday.

"There won't be any drips around the dressing-room," he said.

"We haven't looked to use them in the past and we won't be looking at it in the future.

"Shane had a little situation in India before this one, but was looking pretty good today - he's recovering."

The main question surrounding the Australian camp is whether the world champions will find room for their left-handed run-machine, Matthew Hayden, the prolific opener who last month set an Australian test record for runs scored in a calendar year (1391 at 66.23).

Although Australia have a couple of utility players in Ian "Freak" Harvey and Andy Symonds, they boast precious few batsmen who can bowl effectively in the shorter game, something that will limit the selectors' flexibility.

If Hayden was to receive an opportunity, it would probably mean a straight swap for another top-order batsman, and Damien Martyn and Michael Bevan possibly seem the most vulnerable.

"They've got a lot of options and how they use them is up to them," Fleming said.

"From our point of view, we've got to be aware of all the possible scenarios and be prepared for whatever they come up with.

"But the team feel good. We love being here and we've been looking forward to this series for a long time."

For all that, New Zealand's assignment could hardly be more difficult given the concerns over Nash and Bond, and the small fact that Australia have won 28 their past 30 World Series Cricket games and will be searching for their 20th consecutive win tonight.

The hosts' most recent defeat in the summer tri-series was inflicted in the second week of 2000, when they lost to Pakistan by 45 runs.

New Zealand (from): Stephen Fleming (capt), Mark Richardson, Lou Vincent, Craig McMillan, Chris Cairns, Scott Styris, Chris Harris, Adam Parore, Adam Adams, Daniel Vettori, Shane Bond, James Franklin, Brendon McCullum, Dion Nash.

Australia (from): Steve Waugh (capt), Adam Gilchrist, Mark Waugh, Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh, Damien Martyn, Michael Bevan, Andy Symonds, Ian Harvey, Shane Warne, Brett Lee, Glenn McGrath, Matthew Hayden, Andrew Bichel, Brad Williams.

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