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Liam Livingstone’s fifty helps eke out Lancashire advantage before more wickets for Richard Gleeson

ECB Reporters Network21-May-2019Lancashire are on course for their third successive Specsavers County Championship win following another action-packed day at Emirates Old Trafford. The Red Rose started this week second in Division Two, on the coat tails of opponents and leaders Worcestershire, who had also won their first two matches.The advantage has swung back and forth throughout two days which have seen ball dominate on a surface offering some help but not masses. Now, the visitors have a lot of work to do if they are to swing the pendulum back in their favour, although they are not out of it just yet with a lead of 120 and one second-innings wicket in hand.Having conceded a first-innings lead of 29 at lunch, they reached close at 149 for 9, with Richard Gleeson taking 4 for 35.The morning session was one of two halves. Lancashire, replying to a first-innings 172, started the day on 88 for 5 and were boosted by an aggressive 98-run sixth-wicket partnership between captain Dane Vilas and Liam Livingstone, who top-scored with 69.They united for 20.1 overs to share the contest’s highest partnership, while no one has yet bettered Livingstone’s effort. Livingstone hit five successive fours off the first five balls of an Ed Barnard over, the 56th of the innings and the day’s 19th, with his second taking him to a 92-ball fifty and the fourth securing a lead.But Vilas fell in the next over to spark a superb Worcestershire fightback as Lancashire lost their last five wickets for just 15 runs to be bowled out for 201 at lunch. South African Wayne Parnell bowled Vilas, who shouldered arms, and Livingstone to finish with 5 for 47 from 22 overs.Unfortunately for Worcester, wickets continued to tumble, with Gleeson the standout. The Blackpool-born fast bowler claimed 10 wickets on home debut in a win over Northamptonshire last week, and he continued his good form with three wickets either side of tea as the visitors slipped to 77 for 5, a lead of 48.After James Anderson made the initial breakthrough to get Daryl Mitchell caught in the gully by Rob Jones off a leading edge, leaving the score at 8 for 1 in the fifth, Gleeson switched for his second spell to Anderson’s end and struck immediately.Opener Tom Fell and George Rhodes had battled hard against some accurate bowling, but the latter lost his middle stump to one which nipped back and kept low from Tom Bailey.Then came Gleeson’s burst. Five balls into his spell, he had Callum Ferguson caught at second slip by Livingstone and then Riki Wessels lbw with an inswinger on the way to 76 for 4 from 35 overs at tea.In the second over of the evening, he trapped Fell lbw for 40 with an outswinging yorker before Anderson bowled Ross Whiteley in the next.
Bailey struck again in the 47th when Ben Cox was lbw, leaving the score at 99 for 7. The seamer left the field injured not too long afterwards before returning later to bowl again.Barnard and Parnell shared 42 for the eighth wicket to give their side a glimmer of hope, only for the former to be bowled for 18 trying to cut Livingstone’s offspin as the score fell to 141 for 8. Gleeson then had Parnell caught behind for 25 with the first ball of the day’s final over, a significant blow to the visitors.

The matches, all day-night, will be played on June 5, 7 and 9

ESPNcricinfo staff10-May-2023UAE and West Indies will play a three-match ODI series in Sharjah next month as part of their preparations for the upcoming World Cup Qualifier.The matches, all day-night, will be played on June 5, 7 and 9. At the end of the series, both teams will depart for Zimbabwe for the qualifying tournament, which will be played from June 18 to July 9.In all, ten teams will participate in the qualifying tournament, with two progressing to the 2023 ODI World Cup, to be played in India.The line-up for the 2023 ODI World Cup Qualifier•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“In recent months, our team has produced some sensational performances in the ODI format which have helped raise UAE cricket’s profile,” Mubashshir Usmani, the general Secretary of the Emirates Cricket Board, said. “Our qualification for the tournament in Zimbabwe exemplifies our recent achievements. We want to ensure we provide the best possible preparation to our team and this series will most certainly help in achieving the goal.”Jimmy Adams, the director of cricket for CWI, said: “This is our first ever bilateral tour against the UAE and we are pleased to have agreed this historic three-match ODI series as it will provide a good opportunity for our players to get some preparation ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier.”It will also allow those players not going to Zimbabwe to get some valuable experience at the international level in foreign conditions, which would be hugely beneficial to their growth and development. We are happy to work closely with the ECB to arrange the three matches and we see this as a partnership which can grow in the future.”

Foxes precede washed-out match by announcing Harris will return to Australia to combat travel restrictions

ECB Reporters Network05-Aug-2021On the day Leicestershire announced that overseas player Marcus Harris would not play again this season, a superb 140 from Glamorgan opener Nick Selman proved in vain as their Royal London Cup match at Leicester was abandoned with no result.The day had started with Leicestershire announcing that Australian opener Harris, who had been set to stay until the end of the Foxes’ Royal London Cup and County Championship campaigns, had been forced to return to Australia early because of concerns that coronavirus-related travel issues might affect his availability at the start of his own domestic season. Harris, 29, had impressed with four centuries across the two competitions, making 887 runs in all.Meanwhile, Selman’s career-best List A score was backed up by 67 from Billy Root as Glamorgan posted 277 for 8 in 50 overs, the pair sharing a partnership of 123 for the fourth wicket to set a competitive total after the early loss of New Zealand batter Hamish Rutherford for just a single.George Rhodes claimed career-best figures of 3 for 44 with his off-spin and held three catches and Leicestershire, after winning the toss and giving their bowlers first use of a green-tinged pitch, would have fancied themselves at least to run the group leaders close.But they were able to complete only one over of their innings before rain arrived, and though a restart with a revised target of 257 from 43 overs was proposed at one stage, more rain put paid to that and play was abandoned at around five o’clock.Selman’s runs came off 144 balls and included eight fours and a six. He almost batted through the full 50 overs but was run out off the first delivery of the final over. Root hit four fours and a six in his 60-ball contribution.Earlier, after Rutherford had been caught brilliantly by Rhodes at backward point in the second over, Selman shared a valuable partnership of 92 with Steven Reingold. They were not separated until the 20th over, when Reingold’s attempted pull against Rhodes saw him leg before.Skipper Kiran Carlson soon became a second victim for Rhodes but Root was busy from the start and he and Selman found the open spaces in the ground’s expansive outfield to keep the scoreboard moving.When they went on the attack, Root swept Arron Lilley for six and cut Gavin Griffiths for four to pass fifty from 47 balls, shortly before Selman, having gone to three figures from 120 deliveries, sent teenager Rehan Ahmed’s leg-spin clattering into the brickwork at long-on, requiring a change of ball.The last five overs added 40 runs but a cost five wickets. Root was leg before trying to paddle Rhodes, James Weighell fell to a fine catch by Ed Barnes at deep midwicket, Joe Cooke found the fielder at deep square leg and Tom Cullen top-edged to point two balls after Selman’s demise.Leicestershire’s Ben Mike was another absentee as he completed a two-match suspension imposed after he was ruled to have deliberately damaged the pitch with his spikes during a match against Northamptonshire in the Vitality Blast. The Foxes were also docked a point for the 2021 Blast season by the Cricket Disciplinary Commission, which had no effect on their sixth-placed group stage finish, outside the knockout places.The commission also handed Leicestershire a suspended points penalty on Wednesday after the club had accumulated six fixed penalties within the past year. Should the club incur another fixed penalty in the next 12 months, they will lose 12 points in the Championship, or two in the Royal London Cup or T20 Blast.

The board is still grappling with the logistical challenges of its biggest-ever season, and that has forced some women’s and age-group matches to be pushed back

Sidharth Monga31-Oct-2018On the eve of the start of the Ranji Trophy, the state units have received a letter from the BCCI asking them to adjust the logistics and travel arrangements of their teams in three different events because of the unavailability of umpires and match officials for those days.In a press conference in August, called to apprise the media of the BCCI’s readiness to stage India’s biggest-ever domestic season, Saba Karim, the GM of cricket operations, had said the BCCI was still recruiting more umpires keeping in mind the increased number of matches this season, but he had also promised the quality of the personnel would not be compromised.With newer teams entering the fray in accordance with the Lodha Committee’s recommendations – there are 37 teams in the Ranji Trophy this season, up from 28 last season – Karim said the BCCI was going from organising 900 matches a year to over 2000. As on August 31, the BCCI still needed about 15 more umpires and 12 match referees, not to mention more scorers and video analysts.Karim told ESPNcricinfo that the BCCI had filled up those vacancies but during the heaviest part of the season it didn’t find the right permutations and combinations. “Once we drew out the fixtures, we asked the umpires and match officials for their availability,” Karim said. “It just so happened that the officials we have available don’t fulfil the neutrality qualification or they are not the right grade. We have sufficient umpires and match officials to conduct the whole season now after these adjustments.”The third round and the knockouts of the Cooch Behar Trophy and the Under-19 four-day competition have been pushed back by almost a month each. The knockouts of the senior women’s one-day tournament have been postponed by two days.”In view of the unavailability of umpires during the month of December 2018, matches have been rescheduled as per the schedule below.” Karim wrote in a letter to all the state units, the office bearers, the CoA, the CEO and the CFO of the BCCI. “You are requested to make logistic arrangements accordingly.”

Australia seamer set to be available for full Blast season

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Dec-2022Kane Richardson will play county cricket for the first time in 2023 after signing a contract with Kent for the duration of the T20 Blast.Richardson, the death-overs specialist who has been a regular feature of Australia’s white-ball squads, played English domestic cricket for the first time last summer, taking 13 wickets for Birmingham Phoenix in the Hundred.He has not registered for the upcoming IPL auction, having been part of the competition in previous seasons, which means he will be available for the duration of the Blast, including the knockout stages.Kent were Blast champions in 2021 but struggled badly in their title defence last summer, winning only three of their 14 group-stage games. They have lost Matt Milnes, a key part of their T20 attack, to Yorkshire this winter but have recruited the veteran Michael Hogan from Glamorgan and confirmed Richardson’s signing on Monday.”Kent have a great T20 pedigree and I’m looking forward to the challenge of performing in the Vitality Blast for the first time,” Richardson said. “I know the club has won both English white-ball titles in the last two years and it’ll be my job to help us continue this hot run of form in 2023.”Paul Downton, Kent’s director of cricket, said that Richardson would play an important role as a senior player to help the development of their younger seam bowlers. “We’re really excited to have Kane join us for the whole T20 competition this year,” he said.”He’s an established international bowler who will bring a vast amount of experience to the club. His skillset is up there with the best and he will be an invaluable source of information to our young and developing seamers.”Counties are permitted three overseas players in their squad simultaneously but only two can feature in the playing XI in any given competition. Last year, Kent used George Linde and Qais Ahmad as their overseas players in the Blast, and Linde is due to return for the second year of his contract in 2023.Kent’s Blast season starts at home to Gloucestershire on May 23. Their final group game is away at Somerset on July 2, with the knockout stages due to be staged in the subsequent two weeks.

Dhananjaya de Silva has been shunted around the Sri Lanka batting line-up a fair bit, but for now, he seems to have found a place in the lower-middle order

Andrew Fidel Fernando06-Aug-2018There is a point at which Dhananjaya de Silva could have felt aggrieved. Since first turning heads at the international level in 2016, no player has been moved around – up the batting order, down the batting order, out of the team, back into the team, out of the squad altogether – than de Silva. Occasionally, his omission was justified, such as in the middle of last year when he was clearly low on confidence. Often, he was shunted around because the selectors had holes to fill and de Silva seemed capable of batting both in the top order, and from lower down.Now, after having been out of the ODI side since the Champions Trophy last year, de Silva is back playing the format. It’s no real surprise given the trend so far that he batted on Sunday in a position he had never held before – No. 7. It is also little surprise – given his obvious talent – that he excelled, hitting 84 off 66 balls to give Sri Lanka fleeting hope of chasing down a target of 364. His was Sri Lanka’s best individual innings in the series so far.”When I came to bat at No. 7, my main focus was on how to get close to the big target that South Africa had set us,” de Silva said. “I had been down to play at 6 but because the team wanted a left-hand/right-hand combination earlier in the innings, I had to come lower, at No. 7. There was nothing wrong with the wicket – it was a 350-plus pitch. But we lost early wickets and the target became difficult. Otherwise we could have got those runs if we had had wickets in hand.”In truth, Sri Lanka never seemed likely to chase the target of 364, but perhaps it is that positive attitude that has helped Dhananjaya weather the uncertainty in a side where his exact position in the set-up – in ODIs and Tests – seemed to constantly be in flux. In Tests, he has been Sri Lanka’s steady No. 3 since December, averaging 44.9 in that position. In one-dayers, he has been effective as an opener, as he is for his domestic side Tamil Union, averaging 49.8 from that position in internationals. But so topsy-turvy has his career been so far, that it is in the lower order that he now expects to be picked.”Getting dropped is part of playing cricket for Sri Lanka, but we as players know we have to grab the opportunity when it does come,” de Silva said. “I’ve been told that my position in the ODI side is down at No. 6 or 7, so I will have to train and play accordingly.”The good news for Sri Lanka is that on Sunday’s evidence, de Silva may have what it takes to cut it as a one-day finisher. He is quick on the short ball, scores runs around the field, and though not a power-hitter, he has shown himself capable of finding the boundary, hitting eight fours and three sixes in that latest innings. If Sri Lanka lose a few early wickets, de Silva also seems more capable than the likes of Thisara Perera of being able to construct a long innings and head up a meaningful recovery. Sri Lanka had been 155 for 6 early in Sunday’s innings, but he put on 95 alongside No. 8 batsman Akila Dananjaya to haul Sri Lanka to a respectable – if insufficient – total. He was out attacking in sight of a maiden ODI hundred, with the required run rate having risen to over 11.”I’m disappointed to miss out on the hundred, because you won’t get many opportunities to score an ODI hundred from lower down the order. At the time, I was trying to score a lot of runs quickly – trying to get about 15 an over, before Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi came back into the attack at the death.”

This is the same venue where play had to be stopped last year when spectators threw empty bottles onto the ground as India closed in on victory

Andrew Fidel Fernando09-Aug-2018Groups of spectators have helped collect rubbish discarded in the stadium following both Sri Lanka-South Africa ODIs at Pallekele – the same venue where play had to be stopped last year when spectators threw empty bottles onto the ground as India closed in on victory.A group of students from the island’s South Eastern University is believed to have begun the cleaning initiative after the third ODI on Sunday. But the rubbish collection also happened following the fourth ODI on Wednesday, which had finished close to midnight due to repeated rain delays.The students’ efforts have been noticed by Kumar Sangakkara, who is currently in England commentating on India’s tour, with the former captain voicing his appreciation on Twitter. Sri Lanka Cricket has also released a short video praising the students.This is not the first time spectators have helped clear rubbish at sports events. In June, Japan football fans were seen sweeping and clearing trash in a stadium in Saransk, Russia, following their team’s World Cup victory over Colombia.

Andre Russell also returns for West Indies, and is expected to make his first ODI appearance since 2015

The Preview by Mohammad Isam21-Jul-2018

Big Picture

ODIs haven’t been much on the menu for Bangladesh and West Indies off late, as the impending series is only their second assignment in the format in 2018. The hosts’ successful qualification into next year’s World Cup means that their summit climb starts here at home, against a Bangladesh side that is eager to find a footing after the terrible Test series.The visitors have the inspirational Mashrafe Mortaza back in their ranks. It was a touch-and-go thing for him to come to the West Indies after he stayed back with his ill wife for much of the last four weeks. But he will be pleased to find that his squad has extra cover for batting and pace bowling.Apart from the big four – Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmudullah – in their batting line-up, Mashrafe has Anamul Haque, Liton Das, Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain and Nazmul Hossain Shanto to try different combinations. Among them, Liton is likely to have won the openers’ battle against Anamul Haque while Sabbir and Mosaddek have to fight for the lower-order finisher’s role.Mashrafe will lead the pace attack alongside the returning Mustafizur Rahman who has much to prove after he missed the Afghanistan T20s and the West Indies Tests due to injury. Rubel Hossain will be enlivened by a format in which he is better at, than Tests or T20s, while Abu Jayed would also be buoyed by his Test showing. Abu Hider, who has played couple of T20s, provides variety with his left-arm pace. In the spin department, Shakib and Mehidy Hasan Miraz are joined by Nazmul Islam who has impressed in recent T20s.The home side meanwhile has made several changes to the side that played in Zimbabwe in March. Gone are Carlos Brathwaite, Sheldon Cottrell, Nikita Miller, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuel and Kesrick Williams; Alzarri Joseph and Kieran Powell have been brought in while Andre Russell makes a comeback to the ODI side after three years.West Indies will feel more confident than Bangladesh given how the Test series went. Now, Jason Holder has Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis and Russell for the batting firepower, though they will surely miss the services of Shannon Gabriel and Kemar Roach. Holder, however, can depend on his own bowling form, with help from Joseph and Keemo Paul, who impressed on Test debut a week ago, and spinners Devendra Bishoo and Ashley Nurse.

Form Guide

West Indies: LWWLW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Bangladesh: LLWWW

In the spotlight

Jason Holder’s 11-wicket haul in the second Test has put him front and centre on Bangladesh’s radar. Holder has also been West Indies’ most successful bowler in the last 12 months, picking up 22 wickets. His batting can be dangerous in the late overs too, especially now that Andre Russell has returned to the ODI squad.Surprisingly, Bangladesh’s highest wicket-taker in the last 12 months has been Rubel Hossain. The 14 wickets at 20.14 is a far cry from his Test average of 157.00 during the same period. Bangladesh will depend on him with the middle and slog overs, with the hope that he finds his rhythm.Jason Holder celebrates a wicket•Getty Images

Team news

West Indies will have three automatic changes as Samuels, Carlos Brathwaite and Kemar Roach are not in the current ODI squad. Powell may get the nod ahead of Jason Mohammed while Russell will certainly take Brathwaite’s place as one of the pace-bowling allrounders. Joseph may play in place of Roach, which would leave Nurse out.West Indies (probable): 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Evin Lewis, 3 Shai Hope (wk), 4 Kieran Powell, 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Jason Holder (capt), 7 Rovman Powell, 8 Andre Russell, 9 Devendra Bishoo, 10 Keemo Paul 11 Alzarri JosephBangladesh will be making two changes from their previous ODI, which was all the way back in January 27. Mohammad Mithun and Mohammad Saifuddin are out, with Liton likely to open with Tamim. Jayed and Hider have to wait for their turn to be part of the pace attack.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Liton Das, 3 Sabbir Rahman, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 5 Shakib Al Hasan 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Mosaddek Hossain , 8 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 9 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), 10 Rubel Hossain, 11 Mustafizur Rahman

Pitch and conditions

The Providence Stadium’s pitches were unpredictable when ODIs were last played here in 2017, but more recently in CPL and first-class matches, sides batting first couldn’t really kick on. There is a forecast of showers in the morning, so there could be a delayed start.

Stats and trivia

• Chris Gayle and Mushfiqur Rahim have 500-plus runs in West Indies-Bangladesh ODIs, with both close to overtaking Marlon Samuels’ 523 runs, the top-scorer in this particular contest.
• Evin Lewis is 32 runs short of completing 1,000 ODI runs, and if he does it in the first ODI, he will become the fourth West Indies batsman to have done it in 30 innings or less. Sir Vivian Richards still holds the world record for fastest to 1,000 ODI runs, having done it in 21 innings.

Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan put on their eighth century stand in T20Is to lay the platform for Pakistan’s victory

Sreshth Shah13-Oct-2022An unbeaten 20-ball 45 from Mohammad Nawaz helped Pakistan overcome their middle-overs jitters to defeat Bangladesh in the last league game in Christchurch. Pakistan now face New Zealand in the final on Friday, while Bangladesh head to Australia for the T20 World Cup having lost all their four games in the tri-series.Even though Pakistan won the match by seven wickets, the finish was closer than what the scorecard suggests. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan set up the platform with their eighth century stand in T20Is, but Pakistan did not run away with the chase because of some disciplined bowling from Bangladesh.It was Nawaz’s innings at a strike-rate of 225 that finally swung the game decisively towards Pakistan. It also helped him redeem his bowling figures, having conceded 37 runs in three overs in the first innings. Nawaz was Pakistan’s most expensive bowler as Litton Das and Shakib Al Hasan scored fifties to help Bangladesh score their highest total of the tri-series.Litton’s turnaround, Shakib’s consistency
Bangladesh tried another new opening pair with Soumya Sarkar partnering Najmul Hossain Shanto but they once again lost an early wicket. That brought in Litton at No. 3 but he suffered a muscle strain early in his innings, which suggested that he would not be able to bat much longer. Instead, his inability to run fluently freed him up and he relied on hand-eye coordination to dominate a young Pakistan pace attack comprising Naseem Shah, Mohammad Hasnain and Mohammad Wasim.Luckily for Bangladesh – especially with the T20 World Cup looming – Litton’s muscle strain seemed to go away, and he built an 88-run stand for the third wicket with Shakib Al Hasan. Their partnership allowed Bangladesh to build some momentum through the middle overs, a contrast to their previous three performances in the tri-series.Shakib and Litton batted together from the sixth over to the 15th, dominating Shadab Khan’s legspin and Nawaz’s left-arm orthodox spin. When the pacers went short, the batters countered with pulls and cuts, and Litton also enjoyed a bit of luck when Pakistan dropped a catch and missed a chance to run him out.Shakib batted until the penultimate over to score his second consecutive fifty in the tri-series. He used his feet to get to the pitch of the spinners and exploited the leg side in the slog overs. Bangladesh, however, could score only six runs off the last eight balls after Shakib was dismissed. They finished on 173 when they were looking for a total above 180, credit for which goes to Wasim who conceded only three runs in the 20th over.Nawaz ensures Pakistan finish the job
Bangladesh had a young seam-bowling unit too and it was their most inexperienced medium-pacer Hasan Mahmud who impressed the most. He took 2 for 27 in four overs and did not allow Pakistan’s openers Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan to dominate him.Taskin Ahmed and Shoriful Islam also used changes of pace to force mis-hits from the batters, and though Babar and Rizwan raised their century stand in the 13th over, the game remained in the balance.In his last spell, Mahmud dismissed Babar and Haider Ali in the same over, which fuelled Bangladesh’s hopes of victory. What they needed was a couple of tidy overs, perhaps with another wicket before the death, but it wasn’t to be as Rizwan stayed steady while Nawaz found the boundary early in his innings.Mohammad Saifuddin was the weak link in the Bangladesh attack on the day, conceding 53 runs, and Nawaz and Rizwan entered the slog overs with momentum on their side.Though Rizwan fell in the 19th over, Nawaz played the field, hitting the ball into gaps and milking a hat-trick of twos to shut Bangladesh out in the final over. He ended the contest with a boundary off the penultimate ball of the match.

The same group will play the T20 tri-series against Pakistan and Bangladesh in Christchurch

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Sep-2022Fast bowler Adam Milne has been included in New Zealand’s squad for the T20 World Cup after missing recent tours due to an Achilles problem.Milne was part of last year’s tournament in the UAE after being called up as a replacement for Lockie Ferguson. During a career interrupted by injuries, he has taken 32 wickets at 26.68 in 31 T20Is. He forms the frontline pace options alongside Ferguson, Tim Southee and Trent Boult.New Zealand coach Gary Stead said they will want to see how Milne went in the tri-series against Pakistan and Bangladesh early next month, but was confident he would be ready for the World Cup.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“We’ve had a lot of conversations with Adam and the medical crew around him and we are confident that if everything goes well for him that he’ll be available for the tri-series games beforehand,” Stead said. “I guess that’s ultimately a final test for him to make sure he’s where we want to be. We believe he’ll be ready and that’s why he was selected.”Also included in the 15-player squad are Finn Allen and Michael Bracewell who will appear at their first World Cup. Devon Conway will be the frontline wicketkeeper while Mark Chapman and Ish Sodhi retain their places.There is no specialist back-up for Conway with the gloves, but Stead indicated that Allen or Glenn Phillips could step in if needed at short notice.”We felt that in the last World Cup that Devon did a really admirable job and you expect in Australia that probably even less balls will go through to the keeper,” he said.Allen, the hard-hitting opening batter, has made a promising start to his international career and already has a T20I hundred – 101 off 56 balls against Scotland – while striking at 169.54 from his 13 matches.Stead said that he had a first-choice 12 in mind for the World Cup, but the tri-series will be used to fine-tune plans including the combination they go with at the top of the order with Allen, Conway, Kane Williamson and Martin Guptill all options to open. Daryl Mitchell will be used in a middle-order role.”I’ll hold those cards close to my chest on what we will do [with opening], but think we’ll see during the tri-series we’ll be trying a few different people there,” he said.Kyle Jamieson was not considered for selection as he continues his recovery from the back injury he picked up in England.Guptill will become the first New Zealander to appear at seven men’s T20 World Cups.The same squad will play the T20 tri-series involving Pakistan and Bangladesh which will be staged early next month in Christchurch although extra players may be called in to manage workloads of those heading to Australia.”Along with the all-important game time, those matches will be a great chance to refine our combinations and game-plans ahead of our departure to Australia,” Stead said.New Zealand open their T20 World Cup campaign against hosts Australia, at the SCG, on October 22.