Rain aplenty but the outlook is fine for bowlers at test
Black Caps coach Gary Stead predicts some bowling fireworks when the Basin Reserve covers are finally peeled back for the second cricket test.
Heavy rain in Wellington saw day one abandoned without a ball bowled just after 3pm yesterday, and the Metservice forecast predicts more weather interruptions today.
When it finally clears the tosswinning captain is certain to bowl first, and Stead predicts a torrid time for either the New Zealand or Bangladesh top order. Batting conditions will be even tougher with the pitch having been under cover for so long.
‘‘It looked a pretty green wicket, really well grassed. My view is it is likely to be on the slow side early on and hopefully some sun and wind gets on it, then it might speed up and flatten out a wee bit,’’ the coach said.
‘‘I’d imagine there will be plenty in it for the bowling team for certainly the first two days, maybe even longer.’’
That’s in stark contrast to last time at the Basin in December when the test strip was bereft of moisture. New Zealand opener Tom Latham set the tone with 264 not out then Sri Lankan pair Angelo Mathews and Kusal Mendis batted through a wicketless fourth day on the way to a draw.
The previous four Basin tests were all won by the side bowling first.
Stead wasn’t ruling out the chance of a result, given his assessment of the pitch and experience of previous matches in Wellington when he coached Canterbury.
‘‘Anything can happen in cricket and we don’t want to be caught short in our thinking. Knowing some of the first-class games that have been here in the past, you still can get results quickly.’’
Both teams were cagey about the makeup of their final XIS and aren’t required to name them until the coin toss.
The Black Caps looked set to name an unchanged side from Hamilton, with Matt Henry and Will Young to return to their Plunket Shield sides for Saturday’s round of matches.
Both sides will eye all-out attack with the ball. Bangladesh coach Steve Rhodes hinted at an all-pace lineup with left-armer Mustafizur Rahman potentially in for spinner Mehidy Hasan who was hammered for 2-246 in the Black Caps’ record total of 715-6 in Hamilton.
Said Rhodes: ‘‘It [rain delay] makes the toss quite crucial. There’s a lot of moisture around and I’d imagine the wicket will do quite a bit first thing.’’
New Zealand need victory in either Wellington or next week’s third test in Christchurch to ensure their spot as the world’s No 2-ranked test side at season’s end, and collect a US$500,000 (NZ$725,000) bonus from the International Cricket Council. If so, it would be the Black Caps’ fifth successive test series win after West Indies and England (both home), Pakistan (away) and Sri Lanka (home).