Wellington: India’s inexperienced yet promising four-pronged pace attack will be looking to maintain its upper hand over New Zealand’s batters and dictate proceedings to ensure that the visitors’ lead is extended when the two sides clash in the second ODI here on Saturday.
There were plenty of question marks over India’s untested bowling resources heading into the series, but the likes of Gurnoor Brar, Anshul Kamboj and Arshdeep Singh changed that narrative with stellar performances in the series opener.
The trio also hinted at a shift in preference for head coach Gautam Gambhir, who has thus far been vocal about his liking for all-rounders.
Eden Park had shorter straight boundaries. At the Hnry Stadium here, the square boundaries are shorter, requiring pacers to adjust their lengths accordingly.
Arshdeep and Co. bounced out the opposition in Auckland, but here, the ground dimensions will encourage them to bowl a tad fuller.
The left-arm pacer took the most wickets, but it was Kamboj who was the pick of the bowlers for India with his 46 dot balls.
While the other bowlers focused on bowling into the pitch, Kamboj was rewarded for consistently hitting Test-match lengths.
Arshdeep and Auqib Nabi opened the bowling at Eden Park, but considering the movement Kamboj generated, he could also be given the new ball alongside the seasoned left-arm pacer.
Among the four pacers, Nabi was the only one to go wicketless.
He could be replaced by the experienced Mohammed Siraj if the latter is available for the game, but the Indian team has kept its cards close to its chest.
“I don’t know, the team management will decide that,” said fielding coach Shubhadeep Ghosh during the pre-match interaction with the media when asked whether Siraj would get a game.
On the batting front, Rohit Sharma would be expected to get back among the runs after his first-over dismissal in the series opener. The right-hander arrived here on the back of a good run in the home series against the West Indies.
The redoubtable Virat Kohli’s fluency at Eden Park was striking. The extra bounce hardly bothered him as he kept collecting boundaries at will and anchored the Indian chase.
However, the other Indian batters were troubled by the short ball and would be looking to sharpen their game in that department.
Shreyas Iyer was peppered with a barrage of bouncers before falling to a rising delivery. The same was the case with Axar Patel.
New Zealand batters, on the other hand, tried to pull their way out of trouble against the short ball but failed miserably.
Skipper Mitchell Santner admitted after the game that his batters were found wanting against the extra bounce generated by the Indian pacers.
Good carry and bounce are expected at this ground as well, bringing the fast bowlers very much into play.
Ahead of the game, New Zealand’s main batter, Devon Conway, was ruled out of the series after sustaining a concussion in a collision during fielding practice.
It makes life tougher for the hosts, who are already dealing with a host of injuries amid a gruelling schedule.
“Yeah, he’s been massive for us, obviously. Crazy event at training, but we’re bringing in Kelly, another great player. So it just gives other players an opportunity to stand up, as we have throughout,” said fast bowler Blair Tickner on the eve of the game.
The other player involved in the collision, Matt Henry, has, however, recovered and is available for the game.
