Vettori fit for Lord's

Black Caps skipper fit for first Test against England

Last updated: 14th May 2008

Daniel Vettori New Zealand v England 2nd Test Mar 08

Vettori: Finger injury

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New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori has declared himself fit for Thursday's first Test against England at Lord's.

Vettori had been a doubt after cutting his spinning finger whilst fielding in the tour match against Essex at the start of the month.

The left-armer required two stitches in the injury and has since struggled to bowl properly in the build-up to the clash with England.

However, after being put through his paces in the nets, Vettori has declared himself fit for the opening contest of the three-match series.

Preparation

"I feel fitness wise that I'll have no problems getting through this Test match," he told Sky Sports News.

"I would like to be a little bit more prepared. Missing out on the last two warm-up games was disappointing.

"I'm not too concerned about it but I would have loved to have played that last game to get the feeling of overs under your belt and time out in the middle."

The tourists have named a 12-man squad and are expected to finalise their line-up on Thursday morning.