It is too cumbersome a task to distinguish the wicket laid out at the Basin Reserve and the actual playing outfield! It is no crime to say that New Zealand have struck to their core strength and exploited the home advantage factor to a great extent by dishing out a lush green pitch for the first test against Australia. The tinge of green will just increase the home side’s chances of excelling.
On inspecting the pitch, New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum said that it had similarities with the overall pitches that England used in the 2015 Ashes. “The way they played in those seamer-friendly conditions is certainly something we can look at,” McCullum said. “We’ve got a very good bowling line-up who will swing the ball and if the conditions do favour us, I’m confident we’ll ask some tough questions. “Our batting line-up is pretty similar to England; we’ve got some stroke-makers and some graft players. If you bat first, it’s a matter of getting through those tough times and hanging in the game because it can change so late.”
Australian skipper Steve Smith admitted that his batsmen would have to be very cautious while batting on such a deadly wicket. “You’ve got to play the ball under your eyes, you can’t really push out in front of yourself,” Smith said. “I think that’s one of the most important things. Making sure you’re leaving really well, being patient, and then if someone bowls a loose ball you’ve got to climb into it… Hopefully, we’ve learnt from the way we played in England and we can adapt to whatever we’re faced with out there,” he said.
“I think you do have to rein it back in at times. If someone is bowling well, whether it be on a flat wicket or a wicket that’s doing a bit, you have to adapt to what’s going on out there and rein it back in and wait for those loose balls. That’s what Test cricket is all about. Batting time is key, and hopefully, some of our batters can bat some long periods out here and get us some big scores like we had back home in the summer,” Smith added.