However, Neesham, who has not played in global cricket since the recurrence of a back injury last November, is expected to be fit for the second Test, which is starting from September 30.
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India will begin the home season with a three-Test series against New Zealand, followed by England, Australia and Bangladesh.
On the basis of when in India, do as the Indians do, that would mirror the hosts’ likely three-spin attack of Ravi Jadeja, Ravi Ashwin and Amit Mishra. The mindset in in a warm-up is different from a Test match. “It’s one of the extra tests you have over here”.
“Hopefully the wicket will turn”. Go back even further to Sydney in 1985 (John Bracewell, Stephen Boock, Vaughan Brown) and Hyderabad in Pakistan in 1984 (Bracewell, Boock and Evan Gray) when a trio of spin didn’t win for the tourists.
“It will be important to play it match by match, series by series”. Since that 1988 triumph New Zealand’s winless streak in India stretches to 14 tests. In that 2009 test, India plundered 642 then skittled Sri Lanka twice as spinners Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha took nine wickets between them. “But I believe both Anil bhai and Virat are positive people, who would like to play on good Test pitches, where the results are decided on the fourth evening or by the fifth day post lunch session”, the off-spinner said.
Then there’s the question of whether three spinners, and probably Trent Boult and Neil Wagner as the only pacemen, gives the Black Caps the best chance of victory. New Zealand were not offered a turning track in their warm-up match in Delhi but the wicket in India’s 500th Test at Green Park is expected to be a turner.
It cut back his involvement in the one warmup game in New Delhi.
Black Caps batsman Henry Nicholls says it was a change from the relative calm of Mumbai. “While we respect them, our plan is to not let them settle down and dominate them”. However, just like Siddhesh Lad, the Mumbai batsman who scored an effortless century against the New Zealanders, Rahane stayed away from trying to score any psychological points.
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New Zealand’s coaches have drummed in the need for the batsmen to be positive during the tests. “If we want to try and get a control of the game we’re going to have to bat long periods of time and defence is going to be important”.
