Vettori to lead Kiwis for first two ODIs versus Sri Lanka

WELLINGTON: New Zealand cricket has adopted the rotation policy for their World Cup build up, with Daniel Vettori named Saturday as captain for the early stages of the Sri Lanka one-day series.

Vettori takes over the reins from Stephen Fleming for the first two games in the five-match series. Express bowler Shane Bond will also sit out the first two matches as New Zealand cricket follows the highly successful All Blacks' rugby policy of giving frontline players plenty of rest to keep them fresh for key matches.

Vettori was the first key cricketer subjected to the policy -- sitting out the two-match Twenty20 series, which ends in Auckland on Tuesday.

Fleming has captained New Zealand in 195 matches of his 257 one-day game career, though vice-captain Vettori has led the side in eight one-day matches over the past two seasons.

The injury-prone Bond, who played in Friday night's 18-run Twenty20 loss to Sri Lanka in Wellington, has been diverted to a reconditioning programme. However, he is likely to figure when the squad is reselected for the final three one-day games against Sri Lanka, starting in Christchurch on January 2.

The one-day series opens in Napier on December 28, with the second game scheduled for Queenstown on New Year's Eve.

New Zealand: Daniel Vettori (captain), Andre Adams, Nathan Astle, Peter Fulton, Mark Gillespie, Hamish Marshall, James Marshall, Michael Mason, Brendon McCullum, Jeetan Patel, Ross Taylor.