Black Caps skipper Mitchell Santner (right) celebrates with Kane Williamson after taking the wicket of Pakistan's Khushdil Shah. Photo / AFP
Black Caps skipper Mitchell Santner (right) celebrates with Kane Williamson after taking the wicket of Pakistan's Khushdil Shah. Photo / AFP
After easing to a third straight win and earning the tri-series trophy, skipper Mitchell Santner curtailed any celebrations: “All it means is it’s crunch time in a few days.”
The Black Caps certainly seem ready and raring for the task waiting on Wednesday night, when they open their Champions Trophy campaign against hosts Pakistan in Karachi.
And so they should, given they warmed up for the event by beating Pakistan in Karachi, a five-wicket victory their second in six days over a familiar foe.
The most recent triumph, in the tri-series final on Saturday morning, owed to contributions by a couple of players who had yet to fire in the series, with Will O’Rourke claiming 4-43 and Tom Latham notching 56.
That was the most pleasing aspect for Santner, more important than securing at least one piece of silverware from this trip.
Almost all of the first-choice XI enjoyed at least one bright moment in the series, aside from Rachin Ravindra whose chance was lost in the lights.
The opener should be available throughout the Champions Trophy, recovering well from a nasty blow to the head suffered while attempting a catch, and three meagre scores for Will Young provided no threat to Ravindra’s place.
A hamstring injury ended Ben Sears’ tournament before it began and created a competition for the third seamer spot between Nathan Smith and Jacob Duffy, who both picked up an expensive wicket in the tri-series final.
But nine players will run out on Wednesday buoyed by a bit of recent form, while the team as a whole knows exactly what to expect from the pitch and opponent.
“It’s always nice to win, but more importantly, different guys stepped up at different times this series,” Santner said. “Everyone in the top six or seven fired at some stage and the guys got some overs under their belt.
“So I’m pretty happy with the way things are going, but all it means is it’s crunch time in a few days.
“It was a nice run today to see what [the surface] does during the day and what it does at night. You get an understanding of what might work at different stages of the game.
“It looks like it skids on a little under lights, but the way we operated with the ball was outstanding to give ourselves a good chance to chase.”
New Zealand celebrate a wicket for Will O'Rourke. Photo / AFP
Santner was particularly impressed by the work of O’Rourke and Duffy during the powerplay, as Matt Henry watched on after being rested as a precaution with a minor knee niggle.
Once the skipper and Michael Bracewell applied their customary clamps – the spin duo finished the series with five wickets each and economy rates of 4.1 from 30 overs – Pakistan could only scuffle to 242.
Having racked up 330 and chased down 308 in the first two games, the Black Caps never appeared in danger of failing to reach their target. But the dismissals of Devon Conway (48) and Kane Williamson (34) at least allowed Latham to end a dismal run of three straight ducks.
“We know how quality he is and he’s done it for a long time,” Santner said. “For him, it was nice, and for us going forward, it’s nice for him to get some runs. But everyone had faith and knew he could do it, and it was just a matter of time.”
Now, it’s crunch time, the tournament opener followed by fixtures against Bangladesh and India. With three straight ODI wins away to Pakistan, including two in Karachi, Santner’s side have cause for cautious optimism.
“We’ve played Pakistan a lot, home and away, so we’ve got a good read on each other,” he said. “We’re getting used to these conditions and performing in these conditions and different guys are stepping up at different times.
“We’ll take a little bit of confidence into that first game.”
Champions Trophy
Black Caps v Pakistan, Karachi, February 19
Black Caps v Bangladesh, Rawalpindi, February 24
Black Caps v India, Dubai, March 2
Kris Shannon has been a sports journalist since 2011 and covers a variety of codes for the Herald. Reporting on Grant Elliott’s six at Eden Park in 2015 was a career highlight.
