Cricket: Slowly does it for the Black Caps

Stephen Fleming must have felt like he was suffering flashbacks for a time yesterday as he closed in on one of the international game's most enduring records.

Old enough to remember New Zealand's pedestrian pitches of the 1980s and early 1990s, Fleming found himself back in familiar territory at Mumbai's Brabourne Stadium, where the surface was so slow it proved almost adhesive.

As baffling as the conditions were for South African skipper Graeme Smith, they could hardly have been more straightforward for Fleming, who had learned long ago the formula for success on sluggish surfaces.

Small wonder too, when you consider that the Champions Trophy match was Fleming's 192nd ODI as captain, only one less than the present record-holder, former Sri Lankan skipper Arjuna Ranatunga.

Fleming, whose 89 in trying conditions earned him the man-of-the-match award and New Zealand a handsome 87-run win, will equal Ranatunga's mark on Friday, when his team square off against Sri Lanka in their second Pool B outing.

If the 33-year-old avoids injury and doesn't succumb to a dodgy curry in the interim, he will become international cricket's longest-serving one-day skipper at Mohali, where New Zealand play Pakistan next Wednesday.

There have been times when New Zealand have downplayed their capabilities on slow pitches, but yesterday's showing proved they can revert to the old blueprint when needed.

First of all, they managed to find someone at the top of the order to make a score in excess of 80 and ensure the total would be at least competitive, something Fleming achieved despite a notable lack of support.

Then there was the fielding, which laid down the gauntlet to the South African batsmen from the outset; adding more pressure as the chase faltered and ratcheting it further as the equation became more difficult.

And even without spearhead Shane Bond and all-rounder Scott Styris - one of the most adept at taking pace off the ball - the attack was at its suffocating best; the bowlers working in partnerships to frustrate and deny.

There are only a few countries in the world capable of excelling on rice-pudding pitches and New Zealand is certainly one of them, alongside India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Australia, because of their outstanding talent base, make a fair job of adjusting but still struggle; South Africa and the West Indies are usually hopeless, and England are so bad in general that it's impossible to imagine them being good at anything.

For all that, the more sobering news for New Zealand is that Sri Lanka will not be as gullible as South Africa at the same venue on Friday evening, when Fleming's men can expect a far closer run for their money.

If anyone doubts Sri Lanka's abilities on slow wickets, they only need to cast their mind back to the first round of the 2003 World Cup in South Africa, when New Zealand misread the conditions at Bloemfontein and lost badly.

Apart from the experience of paceman Chaminda Vaas, Sri Lanka can boast an obvious threat in star spinner Muttiah Muralitharan, and solid slow-bowling support with Sanath Jayasuriya and Malinga Bandara.

They too, have grown up in a land where the ball takes an eternity to arrive, and understand well the fundamentals of slow-motion cricket.


CHAMPIONS TROPHY
(Mumbai, India)

Group B

New Zealand

L. Vincent b Pollock 17

S. Fleming c Pollock b Kallis 89
N. Astle b Hall 14
H. Marshall b Nel 1
P. Fulton c Boucher b Kallis 2
J. Oram c Dippenaar b Peterson 7
B. McCullum c and b Peterson 21
D. Vettori c Boucher b Smith 9
J. Franklin b Kallis 9
K. Mills not out 4
J. Patel run out 2

Extras (4b, 4lb, 1nb, 11w) 20
Total (45.4 overs) 195
Fall: 1/27, 2/74, 3/76, 4/86, 5/99, 6/135, 7/156, 8/180, 9/192.

Bowling: Pollock 6-1-18-1 (1nb, 1w), Ntini 6-0-35-0, Nel 6-2-15-1 (1w), Hall 4-0-25-1 (1w), Kallis 7-0-28-3 (5w), Peterson 8.4-0-34-2, Smith 8-0-32-1 (3w).

South Africa

G. Smith c Vettori b Oram 42
B. Dippenaar lbw b Mills 0
H. Gibbs b Mills 0
J. Kallis c and b Mills 8
M. Boucher c McCullum b Oram 8
J. Kemp not out 26
S. Pollock c Patel b Oram 1
A. Hall c Vincent b Patel 13
R. Peterson c Fleming b Vettori 0
A. Nel b Patel 0
M. Ntini b Patel 1

Extras (5lb, 3nb, 1w) 9
Total (34.1 overs) 108
Fall: 1/1, 2/3, 3/25, 4/50, 5/69, 6/71, 7/99, 8/100, 9/105.

Bowling: Mills 0-18-3 (1w), Franklin 10-0-33-0 (2nb), Oram 8-1-26-3, Vettori 7-1-15-1 (1nb), Patel 3.1-0-11-3.

Result: New Zealand won by 87 runs.