Date-stamped : 25 Aug97 - 07:15 August 22, 1997 Allott loses battle to be fit for African tour The Canterbury Press While disappointed, Canterbury pace bowler Geoff Allott is not despondent at missing the New Zealand cricket team selected yesterday for the first of the season's tours to Kenya and Zimbabwe. Allott acknowledges he was short of bowling fitness for the five-week visit after back and knee problems during the off season. He joins fellow pace bowler Simon Doull who is also receiving more time to recover from a double stress fracture of his back. Allott said he regarded his non-selection as a short-term sacrifice for the bigger picture. Ten days after New Zealand returns from Zimbabwe, it faces an away series against Australia, then home matches against Australia and Zimbabwe, before an end-of-season tour to Sri Lanka. "It's still a big season so missing this tour is not the end of the world, although it is still an opportunity I won't have," Allott said. He believes he came desperately close to earning a place in the 15-man touring team having made a quicker-than-expected recovery from knee surgery last month. "But to be honest I couldn't say I could bowl 20 overs on the first day of the tour which I might have had to do." Allott's desire to succeed is unquestioned though, as he soon takes two years leave of absence from his job as a marketing officer for ANZ Bank to concentrate on cricket. The selectors, Ross Dykes (convener), Mike Shrimpton, and Rick Pickard stuck to their policy of not picking any player not fully fit which ruled out opening batsman Bryan Young, New Zealand's heaviest rungetter last season. Dykes said although Young only required minor knee surgery last week, neither Young nor the surgeon could guarantee he would be fully fit when the tour starts in the first week of September. "As with the pace bowlers, we would rather have Bryan available for three-quarters of the season than not being quite right and possibly re-injuring himself." Young's absence allows Craig Spearman a recall, although Spearman's domestic form last season, 290 runs at 29, was not inspiring. Canterbury's Darrin Murray could have been a contender but for a dramatic form slump after Christmas. Given the injuries to Doull and Allott, Danny Morrison, who has 160 test wickets, could have been recalled but the selectors indicated at the end of last season he was not in contention. That was when they turned to younger players Andrew Penn and Shayne O'Connor who have gained selection in this group leaving the pace attack light on experience. Dykes said yesterday if Morrison played this season and performed well he would still be considered. However, Penn and O'Connor were being brought through and are playing with the New Zealand Academy team in South Africa. Three other players, slow bowlers Daniel Vettori, Paul Wiseman, and Craig McMillan, are also on tour with the Academy team and will join the New Zealand squad in Nairobi. Wiseman, O'Connor, Penn, and McMillan are making their first full tours for a New Zealand side after they were involved in one-day tournaments last season. Dykes said he believed taking two spinners was important given the slow nature of the wickets in Zimbabwe. Last season off-spinner Robert Croft was England's most effective bowler. Chris Cairns is to be used in the role of third or fourth seamer in Zimbabwe as he regains full fitness following his off-season operation. The team is: Stephen Fleming (captain), Nathan Astle, Chris Cairns, Chris Harris, Craig McMillan (Canterbury); Heath Davis, Gavin Larsen (Wellington); Matt Horne, Shayne O'Connor, Paul Wiseman (Otago); Adam Parore, Blair Pocock (Auckland); Andrew Penn, Craig Spearman (Central Districts); Daniel Vettori (Northern Districts). Source :: The Canterbury Press (http://www.press.co.nz/) Contributed by The Management (help@cricinfo.com)