The new year sees the start of New Zealand Cricket’s new domestic Twenty20 competition – the HRV Cup.
The series will be launched at Blake Park, Mount Maunganui, on Saturday [2 January] as the Northern Knights host the Auckland Aces. The match, scheduled to start at 4.30pm, will be televised live on Sky Sport 1.
A full round of matches will be played on Sunday 3 and Monday 4 January, with Sunday’s action including the Northern Knights playing 2009 champions, the Otago Volts, at Blake Park; while the Central Stags take on the Wellington Firebirds at Pukekura Park, New Plymouth. The Auckland Aces host the Canterbury Wizards at Colin Maiden Park, Auckland on Monday.
The domestic Twenty20 series has a new sponsor this year, with home ventilation specialist, HRV, signing a three-year sponsorship deal to support the exciting cricket format.
For teams and players there is also the incentive of a place in the lucrative Champions League for the series winner – an opportunity to play against some of the world’s best exponents of the short-form game.
The HRV Cup will receive significant broadcast coverage, with 10 matches – one in every round – being televised live, along with the final on Sunday 31 January.
The series now has a significant international profile and several marquee overseas players have been signed up for the competition, including Pakistan’s Yasir Arafat (Otago Volts), England’s Owais Shah (Wellington Firebirds), Ravi Bopara (Auckland Aces) and Graham Napier (Central Stags), along with Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan (Northern Knights).
Otago Volts
Last year: Twenty20 Champions
2006/07: runners up
Captain: Craig Cumming
Overseas star: Yasir Arafat
Current form player: Warren McSkimming 5th overall MVP
Craig Cumming said:“It’s a slightly different feel from last year and I think all the teams are competitively matched, we want to win and we have to ensure we continue on a winning roll during the HRV Cup.”
Canterbury Wizards
Last year: Runners up
2005/06: Twenty20 Champions
Captain: Kruger van Wyk
Current form player: Andrew Ellis 15th overall MVP
Coach Bob Carter: “We’ve built on the squad this year which creates competition for places within the team. It’s important to retain experience and getting Chris Martin back is good.”
Central Stags
Last year: 5th
2007/08: Twenty20 Champions
Captain: Jamie How
Overseas player: Graham Napier
Current form player: Ewen Thompson, current MVP #1
Ross Taylor says: “I’m looking forward to being back in the team. I’ve got some great mates there and hopefully we can get some momentum in the Twenty20 competition and win the HRV Cup.”
Wellington Firebirds
Last season: 4th
Captain: Matthew Bell
Overseas import: Owais Shah
Current form player: Jeetan Patel 4th overall MVP
Matthew Bell said:“This is a chance for the younger guys of the squad to step up and perform,” he said. “Hopefully we can win a few early games and get that momentum flowing.”
Auckland Aces
Last season: 3rd
2006/07: Twenty20 Champions
Captain: Gareth Hopkins
Overseas import: Ravi Bopara
Current form player: Michael Bates 10th overall MVP
Martin Guptill said: “It’s great to be back in form, Making 150 is a fantastic personal milestone and I’ve pushed hard to get big runs and it’s great to finally get there. But there’s a lot of Twenty20 cricket coming up and more room for guys to show their stuff.”
Northern Knights
Last year: 6th
2007/08: Runners up
Captain: James Marshall
Overseas import: Tillakaratne Dilshan
Current form player: Graeme Aldridge 6th overall MVP
James Marshall said: “Adding Dan into the mix with the bat and ball adds an interesting dimension. It’s going to be great to have him involved. For us it’s about evolving and progressing the game no matter how we do. We’d just like to improve.”
