Franklin says allrounder tag is premature

James Franklin, the Wellington and New Zealand fast bowler, says he isn't going to try and stake his claims as the next allrounder following the retirement of Chris Cairns.

"It's sad to see the big guy leave and they are huge shoes to fill but I'm not going to go about my cricket any differently," Franklin, 25, told stuff.co.nz. "With a class player like him leaving there is a bit of an onus on others to stand up and Jake (Jacob Oram) naturally comes to mind."

While not as explosive in his batting as Cairns or Oram, Franklin is seen by many as an allrounder with a technically sound batting approach, capable of batting higher up the order. His clinical hitting in New Zealand's domestic scene is well known, and in a recent one-day international against Sri Lanka he smashed 18 off the final over. He even has a Test half-century to his name, indicating that he can perform well with the bat. But Franklin maintains that it is premature to suggest that he is a candidate for the job, citing that Cairns' absence would probably open up opportunities for Brendon McCullum and Daniel Vettori to throw the bat around.

During his retirement speech, Cairns himself said that Franklin was one to look out for, calling him `an enormous talent starting to shine' with `a great future ahead of him. Repaying the tribute, Franklin said he took great encouragement from Cairns' positive words.

"It's always nice to get that praise from a guy who you rate highly and to have that sort of endorsement was nice," he said. "I haven't had a huge amount to do with him but we have toured a few times and he's been bloody brilliant. Tactically, if you ask him any question, he's always happy to help you out. He's a big loss for us, he holds a lot of manna."