On the boundary during the first Blackcaps Test of the kiwi summer, in his standard edition Blackcaps cap alongside the best drinks-runner in the world Matt Henry, was Will Young. Called into the Blackcaps squad, Young is the opposite of Henry as far as squad members go given that Henry is consistently in the squad without being in the 1st 11 and this is Young's first Blackcaps call up.

This was reflected in Young rocking the standard edition Blackcaps cap, a cap that you or I may be able to buy. Young's got all the gear now, he's part of the group and gets all the little bonuses that apply, all except for the cherished black cap which you only get your filthy mits on once you get a starting spot. Unlike Henry who is part of the Blackcaps squad fabric, Young is fresh on the scene and has demanded his squad call up via the plethora of 'A' cricket to start the summer.

Uploaded by Central Stags on 2017-01-04.

The plethora of A cricket is noteworthy because for so long, there was a severe lack of A cricket. In my time writing about the Blackcaps and kiwi cricket, that lack of A cricket has been a major point of frustration and while other nations were busy preparing their up and coming prospects for success, NZC didn't do much. Finally, the sussed out a tour to United Arab Emirates to face Pakistan A and then India A came to Aotearoa to play against a slightly different Aotearoa A group from that which toured UAE.

Nuanced detail lives deep within this 2 month period. Whether it's the polarizing conditions, or those slight changes to the various squads ensuring that more prospects got their opportunities, without watering down the A team. Even the fact that all this A cricket robbed domestic cricket in Aotearoa of it's best players, resulting in a new wave of domestic cricketers getting their sniff of the domestic circuit is a fascinating yarn.

The rock through all of this was Young. Prior to the summer starting, Young gave up captaincy of Central Districts Stags to focus on his batting. That's a fair reason, although the elongated absence of Young from Stags cricket may have also been a factor. Thanks to that lack of A cricket, Young has been a staple of the domestic circuit throughout his 66 First Class games (he's only 26yrs!) and his steady presence was perfect for him to grow with the captaincy.

I'll move into Young levelin' up with Aotearoa A, however it's super important to note that Young has been scoring runs for a long, long time in domestic cricket. Young didn't come from no where to shock everyone with Aotearoa A and instead, Young's career has hit a natural climax; not much A cricket means lots of domestic runs, then when a substantial A schedule is brought in, Young steps up.

Since making his FC debut in 2011/12, Young has averaged over 40 in five of his seven seasons. Exactly what you'd expect from a youngster who has a career average of 41.38 and also averages 36.86 in List-A cricket. Last summer, Young averaged 42.87 in Plunket Shield and that was good enough to see Young finish 4th in Plunket Shield runs.

Here's what Young did in UAE and back in Aotearoa vs India A...

One-dayers vs Pakistan A

3inns, 216 runs @ 72avg, 1 x 100.

Scores: 40, 40, 136.

Four-dayers vs Pakistan A

4inns, 125 runs @ 41.66avg, 1 x 50.

Scores: 23, 74*, 28, 0.

Four-dayers vs India A

3inns, 189 runs @ 63avg, 1 x 100.

Scores: 49, 123, 17.

One-dayers vs India A

2inns, 134 runs @ 67avg, 1 x 100.

Scores: 32, 102.

Sure, bumping those 20's and 30's up to 40+ would be great, but Young's run-scoring ability is laid out for all to see. Not only did Young score runs, he did so in UAE conditions and then in kiwi conditions, while also filling multiple roles in the batting line up. This is evident in Young being the leading Aotearoa A run-scorer in the one-day series vs Pakistan A and the four-dayers vs India A; two different formats in different countries.

Understandably, this saw Young called into the Blackcaps squad for the Test series vs Sri Lanka. I reckon if the Blackcaps get a good win in the first Test, Young may be a factor for the second Test, but ultimately the benefits for Young will come from merely being around the Blackcaps group.

This opportunity for Young largely came about via the change in conditions as Ish Sodhi and Will Somerville were both left out from the Pakistan series. With a full touring party not required, Tom Blundell was also left out. Young was called in and Matt Henry retained his spot as bowling cover. Other batting options could have been George Worker, Tim Seifert and Hamish Rutherford. None of them have scored as consistently as Young has throughout the A series' and then on top of that, Young has versatility on his side.

Young opened and batted #3 for the bulk of the A series'. Given that he scored the most runs and did so in multiple batting positions, paints a clear picture of Young being the best batsman not in the Blackcaps. Personally, I highly doubt we will ever see Young open the batting in Test cricket and he is likely to instead consistently feature #3-5. Right now though, as batting cover for this series, the Blackcaps need someone who can do a job in any batting position and that's what Young has shown so far this season.

This also signals a low key shift in the fringe batting selection zone. In recent years, we have seen guys like Martin Guptill and Neil Broom get those roles, which is understandable given their experience and ability to slot in seamlessly. I'd rather see those spot go to players like Young who have potential and can feel what Test cricket is all about - development spots to some extent.

Young's inclusion isn't so much about giving a youngster a development opportunity though. It's deeply rooted in run-scoring and just as a door to a fringe-batting role opened, Young reached the peak of his career thus far. Young demanded that squad spot and in doing so, he demanded that he get a sniff of what the next level is like and as this is now Young's spot to lose, he may be keeping Henry company on the boundary for much of the summer.

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Peace and love 27.