Southland all-rounder Jeff Wilson provided some encouraging signs on Saturday that he should be ready to join the Otago side in their next State Championship match, against Canterbury starting at Carisbrook on Friday

Circumstances leave the New Zealand selectors little option when they choose their team of Max Blacks to play India in the National Bank Super Max international in Christchurch next Wednesday

Cover of book 'Steve Waugh - Captain's Diary 2002' Buy online from CricShop Steve Waugh - Captain's Diary 2002

Even before the miserable spring, the frustration of the players' strike and the pending arrival of a rampant Indian team, the onset of the State Championship was shaping as one of the more interesting in recent history

Central Districts will have two wicket-keepers, Bevan Griggs and Martyn Sigley, in their side to play Otago in the opening game of the State Championship starting in Wanganui tomorrow

Auckland, the defending State Championship holders, named a predictable squad of 14 to contest this year's competition

New Zealand coach Denis Aberhart is not concerned about the apparent lack of time his players have to prepare themselves for the forthcoming Test series against India

Christchurch's Medbury School and Dunedin's John McGlashan are playing the South Island final of the Milo Cup cricket competition today

Slight changes in both his wicket-keeping and batting techniques are what Otago's Brendon McCullum hopes will fuel his return to international cricket

Cricketers around the rest of the country may have been lacking opportunities as a result of unseasonal weather but left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori has been in the thick of the action

Two newcomers, Brendon Donkers and Andrew Ellis have been named in the 14 from whom the Canterbury squad will be named for the first two State Championship matches

Two Christchurch Under-15 sides have been named to compete in the Canterbury regional Under-15 tournament in Westport from December 16-17

A hint of what might be a more permanent future as Otago's wicket-keeper has been offered with Brendon McCullum's selection in the role for the opening State Championship match against Central Districts in Wanganui on Saturday

Canterbury have named four new caps in their side to compete in the State League programme this season

New Zealand's top 19 one-day players have been named for a three-day camp to be held at the High Performance Centre at Lincoln University from tomorrow until Friday

Craig Spearman will mark his return to cricket in New Zealand by leading a strong-looking Central Districts team for their two-day warm-up match with Wellington at Wanganui starting on Wednesday

Two two-day matches for Wellington, firstly against Central Districts on Wednesday and Thursday, then in an internal trial between Wellington and Hutt Valley next week, will be vital preparation for last year's State Championship runners-up

Canterbury were put through their paces today at Jade Stadium in fitness tests, in one of the few summer-like days of the season to date

If there was anyone feeling frustrated by the absence of top players during the six weeks from October 1 it was Mark O'Donnell

Second-tier New Zealand provincial players will have their competition after all