Kiwis go for Ryder

Jesse Ryder

New Zealand have put their faith in untried left-hander Jesse Ryder for next week's Twenty20 internationals - less than a year after he turned his back on them to try his luck qualifying for England.

The explosive 23-year-old has been called into the squad for the two Twenty20 matches alongside uncapped seamer Tim Southee and could form a destructive opening partnership with hard-hitting wicketkeeper-batsman Brendon McCullum.

His call-up comes less than a year after he became so disillusioned with waiting for his chance he told New Zealand Cricket he no longer wanted to play for their A team, refused to attend a 30-man squad get-together before last year's World Cup and signed up to play for Ireland with thoughts of qualifying for England through his grandparents.

His ill-fated stay with Ireland ended quickly but chairman of selectors Sir Richard Hadlee believes could be the start of an exciting international career.

"I think he's made tremendous progress over the last 12 months particularly," revealed Hadlee. "There have been issues, but we do see him as an exciting talent.

New Zealand chairman of selectors Sir Richard Hadlee

"He's an explosive left-handed batsman at the top of the order so he does give us one or two options there and we feel this is a good opportunity for him - if he comes off then I think New Zealand Cricket will see something really exciting.

"He's trained harder, lost a bit of weight and his attitude to training and his general work ethic has improved. As far as we're concerned as selectors, we're looking at his cricketing ability and any other issues are handled by management."

Hadlee stressed: "He is a naturally gifted player, he has beautifully soft hands and he is also a power hitter and is able to hit sixes. I've seen him at various levels play some really explosive innings and if he comes off it would be really exciting.

"When both Brendon and Jesse are going together you're going to see some pretty exciting strokeplay and you're going to see a lot of boundaries."

Ryder has also been included in the squad for the first three matches in the five-match series which follows the Twenty20 games although fellow new recruit Southee, a 19-year-old seamer, has been overlooked as he is a key player in New Zealand's squad for the under-19 World Cup in Malaysia.

Instead, he will be given the chance to impress in the Twenty20 matches with Hadlee convinced that if New Zealand keep patient with him, they will have found a special talent.

"He's really exciting and the feedback we've been getting from specialist coaches and provincial coaches around the country is that this guy has got it," he enthused.

"He's only 19 years of age, he's come through the age group process and we've elevated him very quickly because we rate him.

Tim Southee brings youth to the New Zealand squad

"What I like about him as a former bowler is that he's a tall lad, he runs in relatively straight, he has a high arm action on delivery and he moves the ball, which is very important, particularly away from the batsman."

Hadlee added: "He's developing skills, he's developing confidence and down the track he will offer us some very good performances so why delay in introducing a player of some talent?

"He might take a little while to find his feet but why wait two or three years when you've got someone like him who's a bit special?

"As he gets a bit older and stronger physically he can maybe develop an extra yard of pace but at the moment he's hitting the right line and lengths and he will get quality players out."

New Zealand Twenty20 squad: Daniel Vettori (capt), Brendon McCullum (wkt), Jesse Ryder, Jamie How, Ross Taylor, Scott Styris. Jacob Oram, Peter Fulton, Kyle Mills, Paul Hitchcock, Chris Martin, Tim Southee.

New Zealand ODI squad for first three matches: Vettori (capt), McCullum (wt), Ryder, How, Taylor, Styris, Fulton, Oram, Mills, Hitchcock, Martin, Michael Mason, Jeetan Patel.