Thursday, February 25, 2010

Warner set to flick the switch

That is the message from Australian cricket captain Michael Clarke in the buildup to the Twenty20 international at Westpac Stadium in Wellington.

Both Clarke and New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori are comfortable with Warner's tactic which, if the match officials allow, will see him switch at the last second to a right-hander's grip against the slower bowlers.

"He's very good, he hits the ball as good right-handed as he does left-handed," Clarke said.

"He hasn't got all the shots but I'd imagine he'd only be switch-hitting against spin bowling."

Warner can apparently play golf and tennis with either hand and is certainly at the peak of his powers after clouting an 18-ball half-century against the West Indies in Sydney on Tuesday night.

Switch-hitting will be discussed pre-game with the match officials, but with both captains relaxed it should get the green light. "It's great for the game," Vettori said. "People like watching it and if you're skilful enough to do it, that's great.

"It's not something you want ruled out of the game. If you can switch-hit it could be the next big thing in cricket."

Vettori added he hoped bowlers would get some latitude with wides on either side if a batsman suddenly changed stance.

New Zealand will be pleased to see the back of Warner given the carnage he inflicted against the West Indies (67 from 29 balls).

"He's in lot better form than when we came across him last time. He's a confidence player," Vettori said. "I played with him at Delhi and once he gets on a roll he's incredibly hard to stop. The first six balls to him might dictate the rest of the two games."

Shane Bond should be another key figure tonight. He has proved lethal against Australia, taking 35 one-day international wickets at 14.45, numbers not lost on Clarke.

"We'll have a good look at footage of Shane Bond. He's got a lot of class and no doubt he'll be keen to continue his form against Australia. He's been very successful and hopefully we can stop that."

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