Yes they are favourites. They are a better test team, and have won test matches away all over the world.You really think they're favourites? I fully expect them to capitulate with one win at best.
I can't recall the last time they won in New Zealand.Yes they are favourites. They are a better test team, and have won test matches away all over the world.
They haven't been quite this good (in both batting and bowling at the same time anyway) for quite some time, perhaps ever. We should hopefully give them a run for their money but expecting an outright Kiwi win is outrageous.I can't recall the last time they won in New Zealand.
Why they didn't play Srinath in that Test series dumbfounded me, especially how well he bowled in the ODIs.That Indian attack was actually quite good, but they didn't have the right options in the XI- it was their batting which let them down more.Me neither. Unfortunately, in India, pitches no longer favour the spinners- instead, they favour large first-innings scores for the team batting first, and have become drab draw wickets or win-the-toss-bag-the-match pitches. We've seen some classic turning wickets occasionally, but experts, Indian and otherwise, have dubbed them as 'not up to international standard'.
Srinath had opted out of that Test series- as mentioned then by Boycs and Sidhu, beyond belief.Why they didn't play Srinath in that Test series dumbfounded me, especially how well he bowled in the ODIs.
We can recall the last time they played in New Zealand- and that was a very long time ago.I can't recall the last time they won in New Zealand.
I said earlier India SHOULD win. They are the better team. The point i'm making is that I don't think the Indians should be quite so confident. New Zealand is going to be completely foreign to them and the pitches arent going to be what they are used to. Just like India should win, New Zealand should prove to be a tough opponent in home conditions. India shouldnt expect a walkover.They haven't been quite this good (in both batting and bowling at the same time anyway) for quite some time, perhaps ever. We should hopefully give them a run for their money but expecting an outright Kiwi win is outrageous.
And it was an absolute thrashing.We can recall the last time they played in New Zealand- and that was a very long time ago.
Hmm... ODIs yes, Tests were here-or-there stuff on dodgy pitches, though NZ were certainly the better team.And it was an absolute thrashing.
Says who? Granted the Basin Reserve block generally has a bit of bounce and sideways movement. But the Napier test will be played on Tarmac, as usual, and the Hamilton match will probably feature a slowish, but still good for batting, track with gradually increasing turn. The Indians will love it.New Zealand is going to be completely foreign to them and the pitches arent going to be what they are used to.
Didn't NZ win the two test match series 2-0? From memory, we did them both pretty comfortably as well. I'd call that a thrashing.Hmm... ODIs yes, Tests were here-or-there stuff on dodgy pitches, though NZ were certainly the better team.
Don't know any pitches in New Zealand that don't have grass. Also don't know any that start crumbling, they generally don't deteriorate at all. Very different to Indian conditions.Says who? Granted the Basin Reserve block generally has a bit of bounce and sideways movement. But the Napier test will be played on Tarmac, as usual, and the Hamilton match will probably feature a slowish, but still good for batting, track with gradually increasing turn. The Indians will love it.
While we won the first match at a canter, the second one was decidedly dicey.Didn't NZ win the two test match series 2-0? From memory, we did them both pretty comfortably as well. I'd call that a thrashing.
If you're suggesting that the kind of tracks that have been dished up at Napier and Hamilton in recent years will present problems to the Indian batsman, I think you're mistaken.Don't know any pitches in New Zealand that don't have grass. Also don't know any that start crumbling, they generally don't deteriorate at all. Very different to Indian conditions.
I said they would be foreign, I didn't say they would posess any problems for the batsmen, though in saying that they will have to adjust to the pace and bounce.If you're suggesting that the kind of tracks that have been dished up at Napier and Hamilton in recent years will present problems to the Indian batsman, I think you're mistaken.
Well, a clear implication of the idea that they're foreign is that they will present problems. But anyway, I don't really think they will be that foreign. Napier will be just like a billion other flat track paradises. Hamilton will be a bit different, lower and slower for sure, but hardly terrifying and not that different to the kinds of tracks that the majority of India's players will have already experienced in the Caribbean and parts of the sub continent. The Basin will probably be the one place that generates something a bit different, so if the Indian's technique in foreign conditions is gonna be tested, it'll have to be done in the capital.I said they would be foreign, I didn't say they would posess any problems for the batsmen, though in saying that they will have to adjust to the pace and bounce.
Lasted until India started bowling you mean?Yep. I really want to see some greentops for a change, and to bring some balance and justice for the hardworking fast bowlers. Hasn't seen one since the Ahmedabad one in early 2008, and that lasted just half the first day. I want to know where our openers, particularly Gambhir stands as regards to technique. And to see Ishant earn a well-overdue 10-wicket match haul.