Collingwood v Vettori

Date released: 20 June 2008

In the build-up to the England v New Zealand one-day international at Lord’s on Saturday 28 June we get experts at MCC to run the rule over some of the key figures in the match.

MCC Head of Cricket, John Stephenson is a former England international. His county career took in spells at Essex and Hampshire, as captain. As a former skipper, Stephenson will start by examining the two captains: England’s Paul Collingwood and New Zealand’s Daniel Vettori:

Stephenson: Gives his verdict on the skippers Collingwood and Vettori both came into the job in similar circumstances, taking over from an excellent Test batsman – Michael Vaughan in Collingwood’s case, Stephen Fleming for Vettori.

Both bring similar elements to their teams, being able to bat and bowl. However, Collingwood’s a batsman who can bowl a bit, Vettori a bowler who’s no slouch with the bat.

Paul Collingwood

Batting stats - 143 ODIs; 10 at Lord's

Bowling stats

^{Stats from CricInfo's StatsGuru}

Collingwood: Cool head under pressure Collingwood is an excellent leader, who really leads by example. The perfect demonstration of that was in the Second Test at Old Trafford. It’s no secret he’s been struggling for form with the bat this season but that gritty 24 not out saw England home.

It showed his experience too as it came at a time of immense pressure. The winning post was in sight but England had wobbled, losing Strauss and Pietersen in quick succession. The situation needed a cool head and Collingwood certainly has that.

Bowling-wise, what Collingwood lacks in express pace he makes up for in consistency and smart placement. His bowling can be a useful string to the team's bow.

He took four wickets in the big ODI win up at The Riverside, mostly tail-enders but as Shane Warne will tell you, they all count.

As one of England’s best fielders he’s an inspiration in the field too. After a long day batting or bowling, that can really make a difference. There are times in the field when you need to chase lost causes or really refocus to make sure you hold a catch – seeing your captain diving around in the field to save singles or make amazing catches can reenergise a team.

As a captain he seems to make the right call on most occasions. That cool head under pressure helps but he reads the game well, knowing when to make a bowling change or when to eek out just one more over, when the attack are on top.

I think he’s enjoying the one-day captaincy and testing himself against the likes of Vettori. He’s sure to get a warm welcome at Lord’s.

Daniel Vettori

Batting stats - 217 ODI matches; 1 at Lord's

Bowling stats

^{Stats from CricInfo's StatsGuru}

Vettori: Bowls with intelligence Big players love the big occasions and Vettori certainly enjoys himself at Lord’s. His 100-ball 48, in the Test Match here in May, steered New Zealand to a defendable first-innings total.

His five-for in England’s first innings reply included the key wickets of Vaughan and Pietersen and put the Black Caps back in the match when England looked to be taking it away from them.

He’s only ever played one one-dayer here at ‘HQ’ but he produced the goods then too. It was the 2004 NatWest Series Final against the West Indies. Another five-wicket haul ripped the heart out of the Windies’ middle-order and the Kiwis went on to win.

He conjured two run-outs in that match too, one of them removing the dangerous Devon Smith. He went on to bowl Brian Lara and Shiv Chanderpaul to really swing the match.

He’s not the world’s best batsman but he can stick around when needed and hold up an end.

It’s with the ball in hand that Vettori can really change a game. He doesn’t get prodigious amounts of spin but he’s such an intelligent bowler. He can mix in a bit of extra flight or one that just skids through on a batsman and suddenly you’re heading back to the dressing room.

His captaincy job at the moment is a tricky one. New Zealand are a team in transition with a new batch of young players still gaining experience. Vettori has handled them well, keeping faith (duly rewarded) in the promising Tim Southee but blending the experience of Oram into the attack when needed.

The verdict

I’d dearly love to have both these players in my team but if I had to pick one, I’d have to plump for Collingwood.

A flowing fifty in the middle of the order; a handful of wickets as part of the attack and electric in the field - he has all you want in a one-day cricketer.

I hope Vettori has another good match at Lord’s but I’ll be rooting for Collingwood to be celebrating at the close of play.

What do you think? Would you pick Collingwood over Vettori? If not, why not? Send us your comments and opinions, we'll publish the best ones: live@lords.org

Next up

MCC Young Cricketers' Head Coach, Clive Radley - another former England international, runs the rule over the opening batsmen: Ian Bell & Justin How.

Read it exclusively, on Lords.org on Monday.