New Zealand sweat on Styris

Scott Styris is playing the off-season with Middlesex © Martin Williamson

New Zealand's selectors face a nervous wait over the fitness of Scott Styris before next month's Champions Trophy, but they are confident he can recover and named him in their 14-man squad. Styris missed his last match for Middlesex with a back injury and John Bracewell, the coach, said he was expected to return next week.

"We will take a wait-and-see approach before considering whether he can tour and have no need to consider a replacement at this stage," Bracewell said. Michael Mason was ruled out by injury but Shane Bond's knee and the backs of Daniel Vettori and Jacob Oram have improved and they were included in the outfit.

"This is the strongest side that we can put together for what is a major tournament at the start of an intensive one-day season," Bracewell said. "Mark Gillespie was the domestic season's outstanding pace bowler and performed well during the Top End Series. He thoroughly deserves his place in the squad and his skills as a specialist death bowler will extend our depth in this area."

Hamish Marshall and Lou Vincent have impressed Bracewell during their stints on the English county scene. "Marshall has performed extremely well for Gloucestershire, having scored five first-class centuries, and Vincent has averaged over 63 in one-day matches for Worcestershire and also seems to be in very good form." New Zealand's first game is against South Africa in Mumbai on October 15.

New Zealand Stephen Fleming (capt), Nathan Astle, Peter Fulton, Lou Vincent, Scott Styris, Hamish Marshall, Jacob Oram, Brendon McCullum (wk), Kyle Mills, Jeetan Patel, Mark Gillespie, Daniel Vettori, Shane Bond, James Franklin.