Vettori has high hopes for Flynn

Stoical Daniel Flynn proved a vital counterweight to Jacob Oram © Getty Images

Lord’s debutant Daniel Flynn has been challenged to emulate Ricky Ponting in working his way up the New Zealand order.

Stocky left-hander Flynn played his part in securing a draw in the opening npower Test against England yesterday, taking three hours over an unbeaten 29 while the fireworks exploded at the other end.

Now Black Caps captain Daniel Vettori has offered his Northern Districts team-mate a permanent spot at number six, which when secured can be a platform to a place higher up the order.

That is the route which current Australia captain Ponting took at the start of his Test career.

“He’s got that number six role basically for as long as he wants and if he keeps producing performances like he did first up then it is the start of a good career for him,” Vettori said.

“He’s a new guy in the Test arena and it is always easier to blood guys at that five and six level and as they get experience and mature they can go up to four or three.

“The perfect example is someone like Ricky Ponting, who started at six and slowly moved his way up - we all acknowledge what a good player he has become.

“My preference for him is to stay at number six for quite a long period of time and hopefully, when he’s ready, he can sneak up the order.”

Twenty-three-year-old Flynn contributed only 22 of a 132-run stand with second-innings centurion Jacob Oram but it was his appreciation of the match situation that was so impressive.

“I have known Daniel for a while and he is a hard little guy who doesn’t give too much away,” said Vettori. “Any chance he gets he really settles in.

Daniel Flynn played hardly a shot in anger in his 29 not out as Jacob Oram made hay © Getty Images

“The way he acknowledged Jacob was the aggressor, and that he could sit back, play a composed innings, turn over the strike and not take too many risks was a great sign for a guy in his first Test.”

Oram flourished after moving down a spot in the order and is as important to New Zealand as Andrew Flintoff was to England the last time the sides met in this country.

Knocking over the first four New Zealand wickets is not such an onerous task but no side in the world currently works you harder for the fifth, sixth and seventh.

“The moves that (coach) John (Bracewell) and myself made to put (Brendon McCullum) up to five and Jacob down to seven, to relieve a bit of pressure in terms of the workload expectations of a number six, really paid off in this Test,” Vettori added, as the tourists headed to Manchester for Friday’s second Test.

“He (Oram) just played naturally, that is what we have been asking of him.

“Anyone with five Test match hundreds against tough opposition on tough grounds is a good player. He still has a lot of cricket left in him, so we can expect a lot more hundreds from him.”

Indeed of his quintet of tons so far, two have come against South Africa, and one each against Australia and England.