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Meet the New Zealand ODI cricket team

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Betfair's very own Kiwi Dean Roulston tells us all you need to know about the Black Caps that will be facing Collingwood and co in the upcoming ODI series

This England series probably represents the first real test since Daniel Vettori has taken over the captaincy (after hammering Bangladesh at home and losing tough series to South Africa and Australia away), that the Black Caps would generally expect to win.

The new-look side has had to cope with the recent loss of some big names in recent times (Cairns, Astle, Fleming, McMillan and Bond) and England have fashioned a decent record in limited overs cricket of late, winning their last 3 series. Meaning the 5-match series beginning next week should be a good indication of where the side is at.

In Vettori, New Zealand have one of the best ODI bowlers around - he took more wickets in this form of the game than any other player in 2007, and is generally incredibly miserly. A keen student of the game, he picked up a lot as understudy to Stephen Fleming for the last few years, and he will be relishing the chance in this series to prove how far he's come.

The major area of concern for NZ for some time now has been around the top order. Too often the middle and lower order has been exposed to the new ball, making it difficult to build and chase competitive totals. Wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum has returned to the top of the order in recent times with great success. He recently scored the second-fastest half century in one-day history in scoring 80* off 28 balls against Bangladesh, and also made big scores against Australia and South Africa recently.

Likely to join him at the top is the exciting, but untried Jesse Ryder. Beefy left hander Ryder is potentially a superstar after some devastating performances at domestic level. However, off the field discipline and general fitness has been an issue for the 23-year old from Wellington. If he comes off, the England bowlers will be in for a tough time trying to contain both him and McCullum.

Jamie How, Peter Fulton, Ross Taylor and the vastly experienced Scott Styris will be battling it out for selection in the middle order. Styris was one of the leading performers with the bat at the world cup in the West Indies, but seems to have fallen out of favour after some sub-par test performances. Jamie How was one of few players to come out the disastrous tour of South Africa with any credit, after a series of big scores. Fulton and Taylor have both had their chances over the last couple of years, but neither have been as consistent as they would have liked. Similar types of player, both like to be aggressive at the crease and dominate the bowling, but this positive attitude has often been their downfall as both are prone to losing their wicket to loose shots.

Jacob Oram will fill the number 6 slot and has a key role to play as the main all-rounder as well as provide leadership support to Vettori. Oram is explosive with the bat if given time to settle, and has the potential to do some real damage on the small NZ grounds. His bowling will be invaluable also, as he generally gives very little away and is capable of generating awkward bounce.

Bowling is definitely the strength of the current NZ side. Aside from Vettori, the experienced Chris Martin and Kyle Mills will open the attack and their ability to swing the new ball will cause problems for the English openers. The third seamers' spot will go to either Michael Mason or Paul Hitchcock. Neither are going to frighten the batsmen, but both are consistent and well suited to NZ conditions and are capable of taking wickets.

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