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MELBOURNE - New Zealand cricket coach John Bracewell is welcoming more verbal stoushes with Australia here on Sunday and has implored his players not to back down.
Trans-Tasman rivalry has been spiced up again by New Zealand opener Lou Vincent, who this week labelled the Australians arrogant sledgers who think they're bigger than the game.
It should add some feeling to what is shaping up as a gripping tri-series finals preview at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, with a fast-improving New Zealand trying to put a dent in unbeaten Australia.
Bracewell didn't back Vincent's comments 100 per cent, preferring to label Australia's players confident rather than arrogant.
But, he applauded the actions of wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum, who had a lengthy verbal exchange with Australian paceman Mitchell Johnson that left little to the imagination in Perth last Sunday.
"In its context, yes I do (support McCullum). I don't want us to take a backward step, I want us to be uncompromising in the way we go about playing our cricket. I didn't have a problem with that," Bracewell said.
New Zealand could play Australia seven times within 16 days starting on Sunday, if they play out of their skins and take the tri-series finals to a third match before the Chappell-Hadlee series on home soil.
Bracewell said regular matches against Australia's highly-skilled, hard-nosed players were only helping the Black Caps, who have won just one of their last 13 trans-Tasman matches but consistently pushed them to wire -- as evidenced by their eight-run loss chasing 344 on Sunday.
"I don't think Lou really had a crack at them. We all know the Australian side are extremely confident people in their cricket. Their record suggests they're allowed to be confident.
"They want us to be a strong cricketing nation, they're doing everything they can to help us do that. Playing against the best in the world, a confident team, is only going to help us."
Bracewell said his players hadn't reported any more intense sledging in this series than in past encounters, although it seemed to take Vincent aback.
After scoring a classy 66 in his comeback match, he told Radio Sport on Monday the Australians had big egos and their sledging was "never-ending".
"They're very close-knit. They hunt like a pack of dogs. There's not just one guy going at you, there's a little bit here, a little bit there.
"I mean, I love that part of the game, I think it's brilliant but as soon as they start calling you all sorts of stuff it gets a bit tiring.
"I personally think that they think they're bigger than the game. It's all about standing up to them."
One of Australia's toughest competitors, opener Matthew Hayden, welcomed Vincent's comments and even embraced the word "arrogant".
"It's come from a lot of hard work over a long period of time and that pure Aussie guts and determination to really stick at it and now we're in a position to dominate," Hayden said.
"This side has taken it (cricket) to a new level, I think."
Bracewell reported no injury concerns after the three-hour flight from Perth a day after their 58-run win over England.
Paceman Shane Bond was "the best he'd felt for a while", while star allrounder Jacob Oram had only minor bruising after leaving the field with a knock to the ribs, and will be available on Sunday.
Allrounder Scott Styris joined the team in Melbourne and Bracewell expected him to be ready for selection.
England meanwhile need to do the unthinkable and upset Australia in Sydney tomorrow to keep their microscopic finals hopes alive.
"Statistically it's going to be hard not to be (in the finals), and I can't see the Australians losing a game to England to be quite honest," Bracewell said.
"I think they'll want to keep the pride of that record intact."
- NZPA
