Phil's chance to show he can cut the Mustard

Mustard, the uncomplicated Durham wicketkeeper-batsman, will open the batting in the two warm-up matches here against Canterbury on Saturday and on Sunday at a rustic ground just outside Christchurch.

He looked the part as the attacking foil to Alastair Cook's solidity in Sri Lanka last October without ever going on to a big score on painfully slow pitches which did not suit his minimalist but powerful methods.

Here he will have the perfect opportunity to show in two Twenty20 and five one-day international matches that he can do for England what others like Sanath Jayasuriya, Adam Gilchrist and Brendon McCullum, Mustard's opposite number here, have done for their countries. England coach Peter Moores said: 'Mustard hasn't played since Sri Lanka but he's worked very hard at his game and his fitness and is looking a very exciting cricketer here. 'Most of the places in the side are settled after two one-day series wins and we will continue with the keeper at the top of the order. 'Then it will be up to Phil to produce performances to stay there.' England will use 13 players in their first game and 12 players in the second against Canterbury, so all of their 16-man party will have some match practice over the weekend. An intriguing sub-plot is who might captain the one-day side should Paul Collingwood have more trouble with his back and shoulder. England are reluctant to confirm that Kevin Pietersen is the chosen deputy, with Moores saying: 'We'll cross that bridge when we come to it but we have a few players who could step in as captain.' If not Pietersen — and he seemed to be in charge of the team at times during the World Twenty20 even when Collingwood was on the field — who exactly then? 'Ian Bell is potentially a captain,' insisted Moores. 'He has captained England Under 19s and he has a very good tactical cricket brain. 'Then there is Alastair Cook, even though he's a bit young at this stage. The thing is, we don't just want captains but we want internal leaders.' Even so, it would be a big surprise if it were not 'Captain KP' who stepped up if required. Meanwhile, Andrew Flintoff will join up with the England Lions in India next week to continue the rehabilitation on his left ankle, as revealed in Sportsmail on Monday.