Black Caps batsmen make poor start
Black Caps captain Kane Williamson looked at ease in his side’s first test in seven months. His teammates? Not so much.
Nearing tea on day one in the first test in Abu Dhabi, the Black Caps sat at 133-8 when BJ Watling departed, leaving the bowlers to try and salvage something — anything — from the day’s play.
Williamson had dug the Black Caps out of a substandard start with a classy innings of 63, but after negating Pakistan’s early efforts, he fell victim trying to pull a short ball from Hasan Ali, being strangled down the legside.
It was a cruel way to go, and the dismissal of Colin de Grandhomme the following ball — trapped lbw — left New Zealand in a serious hole, one which will take a phenomenal turnaround to win the test.
Williamson had won the toss and decided to bat first — history indicating losses are rare for teams who bat first in Abu Dhabi.
However, this Pakistan side has reached new heights in recent times, including a dominant home series win over Australia last month.
Their main strike bowler — Mohammad Abbas — owns the best bowling average of anyone to have taken 50 test wickets since 1900, and he showed his danger by removing Jeet Raval early.
Abbas is a curious bowler — he rarely gets above 130km/h but uses his considerable height and incessant line and length to frustrate opposing batsmen, as seen in his incredibly stingy figures of 12-7-13-2. He got the better of Raval in that style, hammering away outside off stump before Raval finally took the bait, getting the edge through to wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed for seven.
At the other end, spin was introduced in the eighth over, and it soon proved profitable. After seeing off the new ball, Tom Latham tried to clip Yasir Shah through the legside, but could only offer the simplest of catches to Mohammed Hafeez at short midwicket. Off he trudged for 13 from 38 balls — having undone all his solid work, and furious at a soft dismissal to a ball that offered little threat.
Shah then made matters worse for the Black Caps, with a sumptuous legbreak having Ross Taylor caught behind for two. While Henry Nicholls fought hard to make 28 in a partnership of 72 with Williamson, a needless drive at a full delivery from Abbas saw Ahmed snaffle his third catch, and put the Black Caps on the back foot once again — a position they are unlikely to recover from.
Spin is likely to play a major part in the test on the low and slow wicket, and Black Caps coach Gary Stead opted for two spinners, giving a debut to 30-year-old Ajaz Patel, who will partner Ish Sodhi.
Tim Southee was the unlucky seamer to miss out, with Trent Boult and Neil Wagner preferred, and de Grandhomme to be used as the third seamer.
The third spin option in the squad, Will Somerville, will have to wait to make his debut.
● Meanwhile, former Black Caps captain Brendon McCullum has lost another Twenty20 contract, with his Indian Premier League side Royal Challengers Bangalore.
McCullum was one of 10 players released as the team elected not to retain his $770,000 contract, with 14 brought back for the 2019 season.
Injured Black Cap Corey Anderson was also released, although he was only a late call-up for last year’s tournament to replace injured Australian Nathan Coulter-Nile.
De Grandhomme and Southee were both retained by the side.
Mitchell McClenaghan and Adam Milne will remain with the Mumbai Indians, Colin Munro and Trent Boult were retained by the Delhi Daredevils, Sunrisers Hyderabad chose to keep Williamson in their set-up, Chennai Super Kings retained Mitchell Santner, and the Rajasthan Royals have retained Sodhi.