Cricket: Spinning the web

Nathan McCullum is the best of a four-pronged NZ spin attack.

It's a given that when teams go to the subcontinent, spin will play a key role in their success or otherwise.

That seems sure to apply when the world Twenty20 starts in Bangladesh this week. New Zealand are gearing up to send down their share, initially in the round-robin stage on Chittagong pitches expected to be slow and give help to the spinners. But there's a qualification: "I think it's got to be good spin," New Zealand coach Mike Hesson said. "If you're not able to get the ball to move off the straight, you're going to get hit out of the park, so it's not a matter of just bowling loads of spin. It's a matter of bowling quality spin."

A glance at the world's top 10 T20 bowlers is revealing. All bar Sri Lankan seamer Nuwan Kulasekera, at No 9, are spinners.

West Indians Sunil Narine and Samuel Badree top the list, followed by Pakistan's doosra king Saeed Ajmal, Sri Lanka's quirky finger spinner Ajantha Mendis - a nemesis of New Zealand in the past - then Nathan McCullum at No 5, with Pakistan skipper Mohammed Hafeez, Bangladesh's Shakib al Hasan, Zimbabwe's Prosper Utseya and Pakistani Shahid Afridi filling the bottom half.

With the tournament being played in a spinning part of the world, it's a fascinating statistic.

New Zealand have four turners in their 15-strong squad - offspinners McCullum and Kane Williamson and left armers Ronnie Hira and Anton Devcich. McCullum is a monty to play as, in addition to his ability to bowl four tight overs, he's a brilliant fielder and distinctly handy lower order slugger.

However, McCullum is wary of getting carried away with the idea that spin will automatically win.

"The experience of bowlers is probably more crucial," he said yesterday. "Guys that understand their role and exactly what they want to do.

"From our point of view, spin will play a decent role. There will probably be eight to 10 overs of spin bowled in most games by most teams. Expect to face spin from the start? You'd be remiss not to think like that."

McCullum, who has played 51 T20 internationals and taken 48 inexpensive wickets, rates the sub-continental teams as generally strong in spin and slightly weaker in their seam bowling department. He backs New Zealand's batsmen against the twirly men.

''We've played spin pretty well over the last 12 to 18 months and if you look at the way we're going about things, we've got a lot to look forward to and be really confident about things and how we can adapt to any situation."

It would be a stretch to imagine all four would play in any one game, simply on the count of overall balance. Three, though, is a possibility, depending on the state of the Chittagong pitches, which have had plenty of recent wear and tear.

McCullum said the spinners talk tactics among each other, while allowing for the different styles and 'go to' deliveries that are distinctly their own.

"I'm probably the older head and the three younger guys are really keen to learn. We do chat a lot about spin bowling, and out in the middle as well. It's about trying to figure out the best way to get the best out of our skills.

"It's understanding the players we're going to come up against and where they're likely to take us down and try to negate that - and understanding where we can take their wicket."

In spin terms, Sri Lanka, the West Indies, Pakistan and India appear best placed to take advantage of the conditions.

So what about keys to success for New Zealand? McCullum has some priorities.

"The best fielding team in the tournament will definitely be in the final. The team that's the best death bowling team will be right up there and the best players of spin too."

Hesson suspects Sri Lanka are in pole position before a ball has been bowled: "I think they are probably the best suited in terms of their spin variations and power. But many sides will fancy their chances."

New Zealand will be one, though their record in the World T20 tournament doesn't exactly roar out a warning to their rivals. Nine wins against 12 defeats and just one trip to the semifinals over four tournaments hardly points to a favourites' tag. However, there is a thread of optimism running through Brendon McCullum's team, based in large part on their performances over the summer.

"We are quietly confident but very respectful of the opposition," Brendon McCullum said yesterday. "We have just got to make sure that we adapt to the conditions really quickly, start the tournament well and try to build some momentum from there."

That M word is the key, in his book: "We're going to have to play consistently well throughout the tournament and probably get a little luck along the way too."

This week - Sunday (March 23) at 2.30am, New Zealand v England, Chittagong