Their turn — NZ’s top order must stand up to spin assault

Curiosity surrounds New Zealand’s batting prospects in India as they try to achieve what 10 previous touring parties couldn’t over 61 years: win a test series.

The spine of the Black Caps batting remains pivotal because there is a vulnerable look to it. Unless the top order can negotiate the wiles of India’s spin, there’s little hope of launching a bid for victory.

Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor are on their third Indian test tours. They have pedigree against subcontinental spin, watching the ball off the pitch or using their feet, but the onus falls on how the remainder of the top six apply those measures.

New Zealand lost 31 of their 40 wickets to spin in the 2-0 series loss of 2012.

Tom Latham’s average of 56.40, including two centuries from five innings, against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates during 2014, showed the grit and technique required.

BJ Watling’s average is 35.12 from 10 innings in the subcontinent, but featuring in two world record sixth-wicket partnerships since 2014 underlines his concentration.

Martin Guptill, with 16 innings and an average of 20.68 in Asia, Luke Ronchi and/or Henry Nicholls must prove themselves.

“Bert” might help as a watchword. Seventeen New Zealanders have scored 20 test centuries in India, with Bert Sutcliffe making three of them. His unbeaten 230 at Delhi in 1955, the highest score by a New Zealander in India, is the most memorable.

He batted nine hours against low bounce, a slow wicket and the guile of the world’s finest contemporary leg spinner, Subash Gupte. Sutcliffe’s health also suffered in the build-up,

and the constant threat of mosquitoes didn’t help the situation.

Without overplaying the heroic back-in-the-day circumstances, Sutcliffe exemplified the commitment required by New Zealand’s top order in India. He dominated without being cavalier.

Sutcliffe’s not alone in the Indian nine-hour club. Mark Richardson, with a cramp-punctuated 145 at Mohali in 2003, and Brendon McCullum, with 225 at Hyderabad in 2010, are also members.

Those knocks led to draws but showed how New Zealand batsmen can plan to occupy and accumulate simultaneously. Williamson demonstrated that on debut in 2010 at Ahmedabad, making 131 in sixand-a-half hours.

Decent totals would give the Black Caps’ spin attack of Mark Craig, Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner more confidence to flight the ball on pitches expected to turn.

It will be the same for India’s off spinner Ravi Ashwin, leg spinner Amit Mishra and left-arm orthodox Ravindra Jadeja. If they can help secure the series, India would return to No 1 in the test rankings (provided Pakistan don’t beat the West Indies 3-0 in the UAE).

“Coming over here, we thought spin would be a factor and that hasn’t changed,” Williamson said before the series.

“Our record isn’t great. It’s a tough place to tour but . . . but you don’t want to jump at shadows. We want to go in as educated as we can to apply our plans, that’s where it’s important to adjust quickly.”

“Things can happen quickly here,” Taylor reiterated. “You can be 100-1 and soon be 120-5. You can’t underestimate the heat, the conditions, the spicy food and the turning tracks. Each of those factors can make subcontinental tours tough for New Zealanders.”

A further incentive that batting time in India can bring reward is that 18 of the 20 New Zealand centuries contributed to draws. The exceptions were John Parker’s 104 at Mumbai in 1976 and Taylor’s 113 at Bangalore in 2012.

No centuries were scored in the tests which brought New Zealand wins in 1969 at Hyderabad and in 1988 at Mumbai.