The New Zealand selectors have announced their team under the captaincy of Brendon McCullum for the three T20s and the ODIs vs. the touring English side.

The ex-skipper of the Black Caps, Ross Taylor has been included in both formats of the game as he has made himself available after his self imposed break. The team is a blend of experienced and young cricketers in an effort to build a strong unit for the forthcoming Champions Trophy and the ICC Cricket World Cup, 2015. The general manager of the national selection, Kim Littlejohn, was satisfied with the selection of the team and said,

“There are a couple of changes that have been forced through injury but essentially we want to be seen to provide continuity from one series to the next. We are however looking at developing talented youngsters and finding a new crop of allrounders in our build-up to the Champions Trophy in June and the 2015 World Cup.”

The young top order batsman, Hamesh Rutherford, will possibly start his international career while the experience of Ross Taylor and the talent of the fast bowler Andrew Ellis, will be a treat to watch. Below, we will highlight the careers of the above three players.

Hamesh Rutherford

Hamsesh Duncan Rutherford was born on April 27, 1989, in Dunedin, Otago, a left hand batsman and an occasional left arm spinner. He has played for New Zealand A, Otago and New Zealand Under-19s. He is the son of former New Zealand captain, Ken Rutherford, who represented his country in 56 Tests and 121 One Day Internationals. Hamesh has been a top performer on the domestic circuit since long and has impressed everyone with his powerful batting.

The 23-year-old has played 12 List A matches and scored 155 runs with one fifty. He took part in 37 T20s, scored 754 runs at an average of 20.94, the best of 87 with three fifties.

The above statistics do not reflect his true potential and there is still a lot to come from the young gun.

Andrew Ellis

Andrew Malcolm Ellis was born on March 24, 1982, in Christchurch, Canterbury, a right arm medium fast bowler and a right hand batsman. He has played for New Zealand, New Zealand A and Canterbury. Ellis has been struggling against the injuries for long but has recently recovered  and is making his impact as a wicket taking bowler while contributing useful runs with the bat as well.

The 30-year-old has played 11 ODIs, he has taken eight wickets averaging 33.00 runs per wicket with the best of 2-22 and has also taken part in three T20s.

Ross Taylor

Luteru Ross Poputoa Lote Taylor was born on March 8, 1984, in Lower Hutt, Wellington, a right hand batsman and a right arm off spin bowler. He has played for New Zealand, Delhi Daredevils, Rajasthan Royals, Victoria, Royal Challengers Bangalore and a few domestic teams.

Taylor is a world class batsman who has performed excellently in all three formats of the game with superb results. He is aggressive by nature and has won quite a few international matches for the nation with his quality batting.

The 28-year-old has played 116 ODIs, thrashed 3408 runs at a reasonable average of 37.86, the best of unbeaten 131 with 6 centuries and 21 fifties. He has taken part in 47 T20s, scored 853 runs averaging 24.37, the best of 63 with four fifties.

The coach of New Zealand, Mike Hesson, is convinced that the above three players will make a lot of difference in the series against England. He commented by saying,

“Andrew proved his worth with the team last summer, while Ross is a world-class batsman who is a key part of this Blackcaps side. Hamish has shown he is an explosive batsman and we hope he can bring that form to the Blackcaps.”

Twenty20 squad

Brendon McCullum (capt), Trent Boult, Ian Butler, Grant Elliott, Andrew Ellis, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Roneel Hira, Mitchell McClenaghan, Nathan McCullum, Colin Munro, Hamish Rutherford, Ross Taylor

One-day squad

Brendon McCullum (capt), Trent Boult, Grant Elliott, Andrew Ellis, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Mitchell McClenaghan, Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Colin Munro, Ross Taylor, BJ Watling, Kane Williamson.

The first Twenty20 of the three match series will be played on February 9, 2013, at Eden Park, Auckland.