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By Editor in Cricket on 30th Jan 2012 10:00
The new four-pace-bowlers era for the New Zealand test XI has proponents hankering for grass-thatched wickets where an arsenal of quick and moving deliveries force opposition batsmen to close their eyes and hang their bats.
But the flipside is, if wickets become greener, New Zealand batsmen will also be interrogated by penetrative seam bowling this summer. The laws of probability mean New Zealand won't win all the tosses so the Black Caps will regularly be batting on the first morning of a test.
The quick quartet theory worked a treat against Australia in Hobart on a verdant strip with New Zealand sneaking home by seven runs and entering Kiwi cricketing folklore. The prospect of that theory working against South Africa, who have arguably the best test fast bowling trio and team in the world, is slim.
If groundsmen are directed to lock up their lawn mowers and put the roller on the blocks, then the burden weighs heavily on New Zealand opening batsmen Brendon McCullum and Martin Guptill.
They started admirably, putting on 124 for the first wicket in Napier against Zimbabwe on Thursday, but the prospect of facing Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander and Morne Morkel in their pomp will be a step up.
Former New Zealand opening batsman Bruce Edgar says the key to opening on a juicy track was making the bowler work towards him: "Leaving [the ball] is vital; you can't hang the bat out like a curtain rail. You've got to try to play in a tight V between mid-off and mid-on. Going wider for early cover drives gives the bowling side a better chance to get nicks with the extra movement. Sometimes it's hard to be disciplined, especially in the T20 era, but you have to contain yourself.
"Good footwork getting to the pitch of the ball is important, too. There is less margin for error with head, bat and ball in alignment. When you commit to play, you should look to hit the ball rather than keeping the bat behind the pad, because you're exposed to the lbw if it's jagging around. Mix that with the need for soft hands, especially in defence, rather than going hard at the ball.
Source & More: www.nzherald.co.nz
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