BEYOND THE BOUNDARY Frowns all round as Black Caps downed
CRICKET
IT’S not quite panic stations at New Zealand Cricket headquarters, as in 2010, but senior staff aren’t best pleased.
Three years ago the 4-0 series defeat in Bangladesh sparked all kinds of reviews, advisory groups, bloodletting and, eventually, the hiring of John Wright as coach.
This time around the situation isn’t as dire but, still, it’s difficult to put a positive spin on 2-0 down with one to play against the world’s ninth-ranked ODI side who are fast closing on eighthranked New Zealand.
Even the popular refrain ‘‘they’re very tough in their own conditions’’ is valid to a point, but gets tiresome in a hurry.
‘‘We’re all disappointed, no question about that,’’ New Zealand Cricket chief executive David White said yesterday, after Bangladesh’s 40-run victory in Dhaka sealed the series with a game to spare.
‘‘In the context of having won the last two away one-day series, having beaten England and South Africa and then to lose to Bangladesh is disappointing and I know the coaching team and the players are equally disappointed.’’
Tomorrow’s third and final ODI in Fatullah offers a chance to save face. But another defeat, heading into three tougher ODIs in Sri Lanka without Brendon McCullum, Ross Taylor, Kane Williamson and Tim Southee, could see the tourists embark on one of those painful rolls which makes home crowds less willing to part with their cash for the West Indies tour, starting on December 3.
White demanded a quick turnaround ahead of the home summer but struggled to put his finger on the issue.
‘‘We prepared very well and put a lot of emphasis into preparation. The team went to Sri Lanka 10 days beforehand and we had the NZA guys in India and Sri Lanka. They prepared well through the winter.
‘‘I guess you’d need to talk to [coach] Mike Hesson and [selector] Bruce Edgar about the technical and playing side of it.
‘‘I’m in regular contact with Mike and Bruce and there to sup- port. Of course we ask questions but they’ve got a job to do and I know they’re all working particularly hard and they want to turn it around as soon as possible.’’
Again, the bowling was serviceable, with four-wicket hauls to Corey Anderson and Jimmy Neesham, but the batting let the side down once more, chasing 248.
Opener Hamish Rutherford scored 1 and 1 in Dhaka, and is amid a worrying form slump where he hasn’t topped 35 in his past 11 innings on the subcontinent, including Otago’s Champions League tournament.
Williamson’s absence with a broken thumb was costly, while captain Brendon McCullum’s run drought continues. His historical struggles against left-arm spin reared again when lbw for part-timer Mominul Haque.
Ross Taylor topscored with 45 but was involved in a mix-up with Tom Latham, which saw him run out after facing one delivery, then slogged out to long on.
Senior paceman Kyle Mills, yesterday confirmed as captain for the Sri Lanka leg of the tour, said the whole team and management were ‘‘on edge’’ after the two defeats.
Meanwhile, Ian Butler (back) joined Williamson on the sidelines, with the pair replaced for Sri Lanka by Canterbury pair Rob Nicol and Andrew Ellis. Otago batsman Neil Broom will also arrive as cover for the final Sri Lanka ODI and two T20 matches.
14
to