WELLINGTON, March 23: New Zealand’s Marshall brothers were named as the first identical twins to ever play Test cricket on Wednesday after Black Caps selectors lost patience with the struggling opening partnership of captain Stephen Fleming and Craig McMillan.
Fleming was moved down the order to bat at number four for the third Test against a dominant Australia, while McMillan was dropped in favour of debut batman James Marshall.
James will join his identical twin Hamish, already an established Test batsman, in a first for the five-day game. Previous Test-playing twins, such as Australia’s Waugh brothers, have been fraternal, not identical.
“I’m feeling good mentally at the moment,” James said. “I’ve been hitting the ball well and scoring runs and the selectors have rewarded that.”
The brothers played together in the one-day international series that ended earlier this month with a 5-0 whitewash for Australia.
At the time, New Zealand coach John Bracewell said the only way he could tell them apart was because one twin, he did not reveal which one, had a pimple near his nose while the other was blemish-free.
“James is one of a few players who are adding depth to the pool of players we select from,” Bracewell said.
The revamped line-up comes as New Zealand attempts to bounce back from a crushing defeat in the first Test and a rain-assisted escape in the second.
Fleming in particular has appeared vulnerable to Australian quick Glenn McGrath, prompting selectors to shield him from the new ball.
Squad: Stephen Fleming (captain), Nathan Astle, Craig Cumming, James Franklin, Hamish Marshall, James Marshall, Chris Martin, Brendon McCullum, Iain O’Brien, Daniel Vettori, Lou Vincent, Paul Wiseman.—AFP
