New Zealand Take on Pakistan With New Batting Order

Wellington: New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori has revealed that Brendon McCullum will bat at No 6 in Saturday's first one-day international against Pakistan in Wellington.

Vettori told a pre-match press conference that McCullum would drop down from opener to six, with Jacob Oram at seven in a bid to replicate the side's batting success of several years ago.

He said Jesse Ryder would partner Martin Guptill in the opening slot, with Ross Taylor and Scott Styris to follow.

Vettori said Jamie How will be 12th man tomorrow, and fellow World Cup squad members Kyle Mills, Luke Woodcock and Kane Williamson will play domestic one-day matches on Sunday.

Vettori said McCullum wanted clarity around his role and he accepted the decision once it was discussed for the day-nighter at Westpac Stadium.

The reshuffle gives New Zealand's batting a formidable look, with Vettori at eight and Nathan McCullum at nine.

Coach John Wright said yesterday the aim was to stack the batting lineup with an eye to the World Cup.

They have announced their XI, giving seamer Hamish Bennett a game and benching Jamie How. Martin Guptill will open the innings alongside Jesse Ryder, while McCullum will resume duty behind the stumps.

New Zealand saw Abdul Razzaq at his menacing best in the third Twenty20, which preceded the Tests. In November last year, he smashed the South Africa attack in Abu Dhabi in one of the most stunning one-day innings of all-time.

Razzaq's methods may not work too often, but when they do, they turn games in a matter of minutes. His smart assortment of legcutters and slower balls could also pose New Zealand problems on wickets that have tended to be slow and spongy in recent times.

Pakistan are yet to finalise the XI, but have announced that Kamran Akmal will be opening their innings. If Wahab Riaz continues to suffer from the flu that curtailed his participation in the second Test, Sohail Tanvir could get a chance.

Teams from

New Zealand Daniel Vettori (capt), Hamish Bennett, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Scott Styris, Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum (wk), Nathan McCullum, Jacob Oram, Jesse Ryder, Tim Southee, Jamie How (12th man)

Pakistan Shahid Afridi (capt), Misbah-ul-Haq, Abdul Razzaq, Abdur Rehman, Younis Khan, Asad Shafiq, Kamran Akmal (wk), Mohammad Hafeez, Saeed Ajmal, Shoaib Akhtar, Sohail Tanvir, Tanvir Ahmed, Umar Akmal, Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz, Ahmed Shehzad

Stats and trivia

• Pakistan have a 48-32 win-loss record in ODIs against New Zealand. In New Zealand, though, it drops to 12-20
• Younis Khan has played 207 ODIs, without getting a game in New Zealand. Afridi has only played three in the country

Match facts
Saturday January 22, 2011 (day/night)
Start time 14:00 local (01:00 GMT, 06:00 PST)