Who could hit a cricket ball the greatest distance: Chris Cairns, Nathan Astle, Craig McMillan, Andre Adams, Chris Harris, Mathew Sinclair, Jacob Oram, Shane Bond?

Why not find out?

Just in case you hadn't noticed it's all-star baseball time in the United States at the moment and part of this time-honoured event is the annual home run derby.

In a sports world dominated by American marketing, you would have to ask the question what value there might be in New Zealand holding a six-hitting derby, and while you're at it how about a quest to find the fastest bowler in New Zealand?

Tie it in with an all-up day for young players by having TelstraClear Black Caps and White Ferns signing autographs and holding specialised coaching sessions and you have a relatively cheap marketing exercise.

Watching big-hitting legends like Sammy Sosa blast a baseball 520 feet with the crowd roaring the ball all the way was a sight to see.

Five hits over 500 feet from the maestro in his first round of hitting had the crowd roaring.

Can cricket afford to miss out on the sort of feeling this could develop among cricket fans? It may take a season of television coverage to get the public to catch on, but the idea must have some value.

Clearly, if such a scheme was developed, the key things would be an appropriate way of measuring the longest hit, and a suitable surface to do it on.

But with the portable pitch technology, and their boundary proximity, Eden Park or Jade Stadium would make perfect locations for an early season promotion.

New Zealand Cricket has a Max tournament to launch its seasons. Why not incorporate the six hitting derby and the fast bowling derby into that weekend?

Why stop in New Zealand?

What a perfect method of launching a World Cup. Finding out just who is the biggest hitter in the world game would be an outstanding prospect.

Could it happen?

Watch this space!

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