Tall fast bowler Will O’Rourke is set to make his Test debut for the Black Caps in the second Test against South Africa in Hamilton which starts tomorrow.
O’Rourke is highly likely to get the nod ahead of Neil Wagner to replace the injured Daryl Mitchell at Seddon Park, with skipper Tim Southee saying today that the 22-year-old has a bright future.
“He’s a good chance,” Southee said. “He’s here in the 13. Neil has obviously been with the group as well and has been a great performer for us for long period of time.
“It’s great to have those decisions. Will is an exciting talent. He’s had a taste of international cricket. He has a bright future at the highest level.”
With New Zealand expecting a quicker and bouncier pitch compared with the slower and lower track at Mount Maunganui’s Bay Oval last week, when they thrashed the Proteas by 281 runs, O’Rourke could form an intimidating partnership with the similarly tall seamer Kyle Jamieson.
O’Rourke stands at 1.97m, with Jamieson 2.03m.
Tall seam bowler could feature in a formidable partnership with Kyle Jamieson for Black Caps in second Test in Hamilton. (Source: 1News)
“His strengths are obviously his height and ability to extract bounce,” Southee said of O'Rourke. “Being a big, tall guy he’s not too dissimilar to [Kyle Jamieson]. He’s got skills with the ball as well.
“He’s got the tools to be a very good bowler and someone who I’m sure will thrive at this level.”
O’Rourke played three ODIs against Bangladesh in December - his best figures of 3-47 coming in Nelson.
Canterbury player O’Rourke, who was born in England, made his first class debut in 2022 and took 6-20 in a Ford Trophy match against Auckland in Rangiora late last year.
“First five-wicket bag is always a nice one,” he said yesterday. “The pitch [in Rangiora] had a bit of assistance for us, so I just put it in the right area and got lucky enough to take a few edges.
“You bank a bit of confidence from the fact I’ve played at the international level before. I’ll take a few lessons from that and try to put that into Test match cricket.”
Glenn Phillips is likely to be promoted up to No.5 batting order to cover for Mitchell, who has a foot injury.
For South Africa skipper Neil Brand, the key to improving on the first Test performance will be in forming better batting partnerships.
“We just have to do the right things for longer, especially with the bat," he said. "We’ve got ourselves in, not good positions, but in better positions. One thing in particular is losing a wicket after breaks and losing two wickets at a time which isn’t ideal in Test cricket.”
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