We must change and grow as side says skipper Joe
IT HAS been more than a decade since England won a Test series away from home against New Zealand or the West Indies.
Against teams who have significantly fewer resources and fewer elite cricketers to call on than England, they have stumbled.
And if they are to make history in the two-Test series against the Kiwis that begins with a debut Test in Mount Maunganui tonight, they must heed the lessons dished out by the Windies earlier this year.
“It’s important to have an open mind,” said skipper Joe Root. “It’s a good chance to see where we’re at, more than anything. It’s a chance to grow in these conditions and bat for long periods of time to set the game up in the first innings.
“As a bowling group, to be quite creative and do things slightly differently to how we’ve done it before and grow as a side. Come up with different ideas of how we’re going to get wickets when it does go flat. Not just bowl the same way for four different bowlers.
“Try to create new angles, look at different areas, try to test out different parts of the batters’ techniques and make it difficult for one batter to settle over a period of time.”
England are talking a good game, based around a more traditional style of Test cricket, of going back to the basics of big first innings totals, batting for long periods and being more patient with the ball.
The big difference in the make-up of England’s side will be the introduction of Jofra
Archer for his first overseas Test series. But to rely on him as the answer to their prayers would be as naive as playing two spinners and three wicketkeepers in Barbados.
Archer should have a big say in the outcome of this series, but even he has admitted that it could take every trick he has to be successful with a virtually seamless Kookaburra ball and against the immovable Kane Williamson, below.
And it is not just Williamson who knows how to handle the bowling either with Tom Latham and Henry Nicholls joining their skipper in scoring four tons in their last 14 matches. When you add in the skills of Ross Taylor, it is easy to see how they have managed to score more than 400 in an innings in 50 per cent of those matches while England are 12 per cent over the same period.
New Zealand are ranked higher and are further down the track as a Test side than England and Williamson is keen to make that all count. “The World Cup final was hard to take,” said Williamson. “But the focus is the here and now and that’s two Tests against England.
“They’re a good side, a stiff challenge that we’re looking forward to and they’re always competitive matches.”
At least there is no boundary count-back for the local Taurangaborn batsman to worry about this time.
“It’s not really cricket and I think both teams appreciated that,” he said. “No one ever thought that was going to happen.”