EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE THE HINDU DELHI SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2020 SPORT 19 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Batsmen will have to step up for India to draw level Ishant out with injury, Umesh likely to come in; New Zealand all set to unleash pace power by playing four specialist seamers DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD INDIA IN NZ bounce and an off­stump homme’s teasing swing. DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD line, Umesh, a handful with Kohli & Co. will have to B 60 points of the World Test S. Dinakar his pace, does damage with face off against left­armer Championship at stake Christchurch reverse­swing. Umesh pitch­ Wagner, who employs short­ The Hagley Oval is flanked by es the ball up and can bowl pitched bowling with telling B New Zealand won a Test, lush green gardens that mir­ out­swingers with the new effect, both over and round against Sri Lanka here in 2018, by 423 runs ror the city’s serene and ball. the wicket, often from wide DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD pleasant ambience. The Indian batsmen will of the crease. However, things will not have to approach the Test Before Wagner enters the up for it to swing. And land be remotely as peaceful for with a fresh mind­set. At Wel­ picture, the Indians will have on a good length for the the Indians on a grass­laden lington, they appeared un­ to cope with the left­right sphere to seam around. surface as they strive to der a mental siege. They swing bowling of Boult and The Indians have a fight square the series in the se­ were neither convincing in Southee. on their hands on what could cond Test beginning on defence as the ball seamed Then there is the off­ be a seam­trap. Saturday. around nor able to pierce the stump line and bounce of The teams (from): infield. Simply put, the In­ Kyle Jamieson. New Zealand: Kane Williamson A big game dian batsmen could not take On a seaming track, firm (Capt.), Tom Latham, Tom Blun­ Also at stake would be 60 the challenge to the Kiwi pa­ pushes in the `V’ rather than dell, Henry Nicholls, Ross Tay­ points of the World Test cemen. big drives are more produc­ lor, Colin de Grandhomme, B­J. Championship. It’s a big In fact, apart from Mayank tive. If the length is short, the Watling (wk), Kyle Jamieson, game for both sides. Agarwal’s second­innings cut and the pull can fetch Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Neil Wagner, Ajaz Patel and Daryl The Test has not begun half­century, none was able runs. Mitchell. and India has already been to find the balance between India: Virat Kohli (Capt.), hit by an injury blow. Ishant aggression and defence. Know your off­stump Mayank Agarwal, Prithivi Shaw, Sharma’s ankle injury — The Indian batsmen have to Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Ra­ picked up during the Ranji Sweet memories play and leave, know where hane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh season — has flared up again The Kiwis comprehend the their off­stump is. They also Pant (wk), R. Jadeja, Mohhamed and the lanky paceman will green, seaming track here need to display footwork, ba­ Shami, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit miss the second Test. and the conditions well. In lance in the stance, and a still Bumrah, R. Ashwin, Umesh Ya­ Ishant was, by far, the best the Test against Sri Lanka, head. It’s important that the dav, Ravindra Jadeja, Wriddhi­ Indian bowler in the first Test here in 2018, New Zealand No easy ride: India has a fight on its hands, and Mayank Agarwal, Wriddhiman Saha and Cheteshwar Pujara, seen leaving the batsman covers for move­ man Saha (wk), Navdeep Saini and Shubhman Gill. and returned a five­wicket in­ won by a whopping 423 Hagley Oval after training, know that only too well. * AP ment. Umpires: Richard Kettlebo­ nings haul. runs. Trent Boult, Tim Jasprit Bumrah and Mo­ rough, Michael Gough; TV um- Umesh Yadav, sharp but Southee and Neil Wagner was dismissed for 178 in its A team has to play good the young Prithvi Shaw, have be under greater scrutiny in hammed Shami did not bowl pire: Aleem Dar; Match referee: not as tall as Ishant, is ex­ were red hot. first innings. So the toss cricket, adapt to the condi­ to wait for the ball to come to the Test with the Kiwis likely the right length in Welling­ Ranjan Madugalle. pected to come in. And that was a Test where alone does not determine tions. them, and play late. to play four specialist seam­ ton. The match begins at 4 a.m. While Ishant relies on New Zealand, asked to bat, outcomes in these parts. The batsmen, including The Indian batting could ers plus Colin de Grand­ Both should pitch the ball IST. A shake­up can be a good thing: Shastri ‘Advantage home pacers’ Dubai to host Asia Cup India coach confident boys will be able to bounce back with an open mind­set Special Correspondent Christchurch Press Trust of India S. Dinakar you are on a run like we Trent Boult was full of beans Kolkata Christchurch were, a shake­up like that is ahead of the second Test on BCCI president Sourav Gan­ As an opening batsman, Ravi good because it opens your a greenish Hagley Oval pitch. guly on Friday said the next Shastri relished pushing de­ mind­set.” He said here on Friday, “I Asia Cup will be held in Du­ liveries down the ground. He He said: “When you are wouldn’t say the confidence bai, paving the way for both played the percentage game, on the road winning all the is through the roof but we’re India and Pakistan to parti­ batted straight. time, or you have not tasted very excited about continu­ cipate in the continental And, as coach, Shastri is defeat, you can have a closed ing from where we left off in tournament. someone who talks straight. mind­set. I thought we were Wellington.” Pakistan was the desig­ No roundabout answers. He a little conservative and ten­ Boult said the conditions nated host for the tourna­ gets to the point quickly, tative in that first Test. Win­ here suited the Kiwi pace­ ment scheduled for Sep­ does not go into denial ning away from the sub­con­ men. “I like the overheads tember, but with the BCCI mode. tinent in red­ball cricket is that present down here in making it clear that India Asked about India’s inabil­ always difficult. You need to terms of the cloud cover and would not be able to travel ity to make short work of the adapt.” the swing that’s on offer.” to the neighbouring coun­ tail, a factor that has often Charged up: Virat Kohli drives home a point with Prithvi Shaw The left­arm pace spear­ try owing to security con­ haunted this side, Shastri ahead of the second Test, which will see an India revival, Pacers ready to strike head said: “Its always a good cerns, the event has been said: “It has been a problem according to coach Ravi Shastri. * AP Talking about the Indian pa­ surface here. There’s always More ammunition: Neil Wagner is expected to add muscle to moved to Dubai. in the last year or so. We’ve cemen, Shastri exuded con­ a little bit there in the initial the New Zealand attack. * AP “Asia Cup will be held in had a chat on this. We have We have had conversations “Will the second innings fidence. “Bumrah is very stages of that first innings Dubai and both India and been over­aggressive or at on this.” be that important. Do you close to getting a five­for or a but it turns into a good been too successful here. <> Generally it’s a Pakistan will play,” Ganguly times too defensive. We will On having to choose bet­ need him more in the first in­ six­for, might happen tomor­ surface.” “There hasn’t been too ma­ wicket that has good told reporters at the Eden look to address it.” ween Ashwin and Ravindra nings. Is his batting going to row. Similarly with Shami, so On the pitch being green, ny wickets taken here by pace and carry and Gardens before leaving for Jadeja for a place in the ele­ count? Is his fielding going to nothing to worry about. The Boult said: “Traditionally spinners, but if that suggests it swings around Dubai for the Asian Cricket Ashwin’s batting ven, Shastri said: “We will count? Is his overall fitness Indian bowlers have to be you come down here and there isn’t much turn I’m Council (ACC) meeting, to here a bit and it On R. Ashwin, Shastri ob­ see how much of a role a going to count? Those are more patient, bowl more in normally see a bit of grass not sure. Generally it’s a be held on March 3. served: “He is a world­class spinner has, first of all. How areas you look into.” the right areas and create so, from my point of view, I wicket that has good pace generally produces Earlier, the BCCI had bowler. If anything, he will many overs you think he is Shastri felt a defeat, such pressure.” hope it stays that way and and carry and it swings a good contest said it has no problem with be disappointed with the going to bowl in the game. Is as the one in the first Test, Looking at the second that we get it to move around here a bit and it gen­ between bat and Pakistan hosting the tour­ way he has batted.