The days of New Zealand teams heading away on limited preparation to tackle subcontinent teams in their back yards could soon be a thing of the past.
Plans are afoot to develop an indoor turf training centre at Lincoln, on the outskirts of Christchurch, where pitches, using different types ofclay, can be prepared to order.
New Zealand players are handicapped by the country's climate, in that it is challenging to get a suitable winter preparation for late-year tours.
That's the time frame when New Zealand tend to be touring India, Sri Lanka or Bangladesh or, given the current situation in Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates.
"During winter our guys struggle to train on grass," New Zealand Cricket's head of cricket Lindsay Crocker said.
"We've regarded this as bad luck. Well, it's no longer bad luck. We've got to manage that and find a solution, find ways for our guys to train all year round on grass, including preparing for overseas tours without the expense of flying off overseas."
So NZC are looking to replicate pitch conditions in a purpose-built facility at Lincoln. By use of different clays, the plan is for curators to prepare pitches to mimic playing in subcontinent conditions.
A similar venture has recently been instituted at Palmerston North Boys' High School.
Theoretically, pitches could be put in to ape those in England, although Crocker pointed out there is usually a reasonable lead-in time to tests in England and conditions there are not quite as demanding for New Zealand players as those in Asia.
"Those are the ones we need more skill work done on," Crocker said.
There has been a block covered by a marquee at Lincoln for some time, but nowhere near as versatile as that being planned.
Crocker characterised it as a New Zealand solution to a distinctly New Zealand problem.
Australia, by contrast, can head to Brisbane or the Northern Territory in winter; South Africa have their high-veldt of Pretoria or Johannesburg where it rarely rains in winter; while England simply fly off to Dubai.
Plans are expected to be locked in within the next two months. Funding will come in part from NZC's dividend from the World Cup and fundraising beyond that.
