Cricket: Wright backs men over fix claims

New Zealand coach John Wright yesterday stood firmly by his players amid the latest match fixing allegations swirling around the game. Two New Zealand players were allegedly identified by Indian bookmakers to British newspaper the Sunday Times as being involved, dating back to 2010. However Wright supported his players and slapped the claims as "unsubstantiated rumours". "I like the guys I work with. I think I've got a pretty good feel for them, particularly the senior players," he said. "They've represented New Zealand with a lot of integrity and I expect their reputations will continue that way." Wright admitted the fixing allegations could be disruptive, but not in this case. "It's a fairly unsubstantiated report at this stage and really in the environment a lot of cricketers work these days, particularly our boys in the Indian Premier League, there's always that sort of rumour, those sorts of headlines." Wright wanted to ensure the scandal didn't get in the way of their job, which required a strong performance against a top-class South African team. He put it down as one of the issues the team had to deal with in the season. "It's part and parcel of being with the team, trying to keep things balanced, keeping the players relaxed and concentrating on the job." New Zealand drew confidence from the drawn first test at Dunedin, Wright said, particularly in view of the punishment they took in the three-game ODI series preceding Dunedin. The Seddon Park pitch looked green and seam friendly yesterday, but Wright expects that to brown off in the next day. It should help the seamers in the first session tomorrow, but that's simply the sign of a decent test strip. "This is a good batting track. Traditionally it's not a bad place to bat," former test opener, and Northern Districts batsman, Wright said. Wright dropped a hint that on initial viewing, it might not be the moment to give a debut to legspinner Tarun Nethula. But it is a good move having him in the group to give the batsmen a chance to prepare for South Africa's exuberant twirler Imran Tahir. He should have been in the Dunedin group for the same reason. So the choice is likely to boil down to either local seamer Brent Arnel or stocky quick Mark Gillespie, respectively 33 and 32, with allrounder Andrew Ellis the third option. Ellis would stiffen the batting around No 8; Arnel is steady and his form has been good - 32 Plunket Shield wickets at a strong 22.03 apiece, second only to Neil Wagner's 34 - he knows Seddon Park as well as any player, but his nine wickets from five tests have cost 55 runs apiece. Gillespie, bugged by injury issues since the last of his three tests, against the West Indies at Dunedin in December 2008, has 30 Plunket Shield wickets at 27.53, swings the ball and is lively. "Each has his case," Wright, the diplomat, said. "We've really got to concentrate on getting 20 wickets and that looks a real challenge. It'll probably boil down to what the conditions look like and who we think will suit this wicket best." New Zealand might like a seamer's haven, but they know that won't exactly displease South Africa, who have three quicks inside the world's top 20, including No 1 Dale Steyn. He was off form in Dunedin, looked short of a gallop, but can be expected to be a handful over the next two tests.