England coach ready for Kiwi backlash

England coach Peter Moores expects New Zealand to be a far tougher proposition in the upcoming One-Day series than they were in a lopsided Test campaign.

England cruised to a 2-0 Test series victory with an innings and nine run win, achieved with more than a day to spare, at Trent Bridge here on Sunday - a result that followed a 2-1 series win for Moores's men in New Zealand in March.

They also won both Twenty20 internationals on that tour, an encouraging sign for England ahead of Friday's one-off Twenty20 at Old Trafford. But the five One-Day Internationals that follow should see the Black Caps at their best.

New Zealand beat England 3-1 in a One-Day series on home soil in February and are ranked third in the world in the 50 over game. Last year they reached the semi-finals of the World Cup in the Caribbean after beating England in the pool phase.

And on their previous tour of England, four years ago, New Zealand won a triangular One-Day series also featuring the West Indies.

"I think they'll come really hard at us in the One-Dayers because they pride themselves on being a good One-Day side," said Moores. "They've played well away from home in the past and they'll really want to try to bounce back and it will be quite tough.

"As a One-Day side we're still finding out some roles and settling a bit as a team, so we've got plenty to concentrate on and we're going to have to play very well to win the One-Day series."

All the members of England's One-Day squad, except the Nottinghamshire trio of Stuart Broad, Ryan Sidebottom and Graeme Swann, whose team do not have a match, have been released to play for their counties in Wednesday's domestic Twenty20 Cup games as a warm-up for the Old Trafford fixture.

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori, whose squad will be boosted by the inclusion of all-rounder Scott Styris, now a One-Day specialist, also expects a marked improvement from the Black Caps in the limited overs format.

"We're a lot more confident in that form, maybe because it's shorter and we don't have to perform for very long periods," Vettori said. But the left-arm spinner added: "We know we have to pick it up though, because England do have the momentum. Their squad doesn't change much and neither does ours."

New Zealand will prepare for the Twenty20 clash with a One-Day warm-up game against Worcestershire at New Road on Wednesday.

Vettori's side could find themselves facing fast bowler Simon Jones, one of the stars of England's 2005 Ashes series win. The former Glamorgan quick is currently on his way back from a succession of injuries and has taken 13 wickets in his last two County Championship matches.

However, it has become increasingly common for counties to rest their leading players for what are frequently regarded as 'meaningless' matches against touring teams.