Rachin Ravindra on Black Caps draw with India. Video / NZ Herald
One of the Black Caps' batting heroes could be dropped from the team for the second test against India in Mumbai starting tomorrow afternoon.
The Black Caps held on for a thrilling draw in the first test in Kanpur, a result that was achieved in large part thanksto the batting contributions of their spinners, with Will Somerville, Rachin Ravindra and Ajaz Patel all playing their part in clinging on to avoid defeat.
However, the fact they even had a chance to produce a positive result is remarkable when considering how little production they received with the ball from their spinners.
In conditions that India's spinners took full advantage of, taking 17 wickets, the Black Caps' spin trio only mustered three, highlighting just how brilliantly seamers Kyle Jamieson and Tim Southee bowled to keep New Zealand in the test.
Jamieson and Southee combined for 14 wickets for 275 runs, while the spin trio combined for three wickets for 293 runs. Those three wickets all came from Patel, and even he wasn't at his best, in conditions that although weren't full of bounce and turn, still had enough support for India's tweakers to take wickets at an average of 17, while conceding only 1.6 runs per over.
So, while it may be bold and counterintuitive to go into a test in India with three seamers and two spinners, New Zealand's strength lays with their seamers, and if Jamieson and Southee can still perform at the highest level in India, then why can't Neil Wagner?
The Black Caps could make a change to their team from the first test. Photo / Photosport
Black Caps coach Gary Stead acknowledged that "there may be changes", and that Wagner will come into the frame for the second test.
"It's always hard when you go into a test series and Neil Wagner's the guy you've left out, but when we made that decision around having two seam bowlers and two spinners and an all-rounder, then you have to make tough decisions because if you leave Southee or Jamieson out, then the same thing can be said about those guys as well.
"It was obviously a really tough decision to make, and Neil being the man he is has taken that on the chin as well, but if he gets a chance I know he'll be champing at the bit and ready to go."
Unless Jamieson, or more likely the painkiller-requiring Southee, aren't at 100 per cent fitness for the second test, Wagner would most likely step in for Somerville, who despite his nightwatchman heroics, went 40 overs without taking a wicket in Kanpur – the longest dry spell by a visiting spinner since 1998.
However, that would leave plenty of pressure on Patel to shoulder the spin-bowling load, with Ravindra having yet to prove himself as a long-form bowling threat.
Will Somerville shone with the bat but went wicketless with the ball. Photo / Photosport
On the other hand, leaving out Ravindra after his debut heroics would significantly lengthen the tail order, and Stead offered explanations for why the spinners were off the mark, including the understandable factor that Patel and Somerville were coming out of Auckland lockdown.
"It's always hard when you look to compare them against their Indian counterparts, because that's naturally what people go to. The Indian spinners in their conditions probably bowl 5-10km/h quicker on average than us, it's not always easy to be able to adjust immediately and do that."
Stead also pointed to the change in surface – from a black clay in Kanpur to a red clay in Mumbai – as something that will influence his decision.
"We expected that Kanpur wicket to dust more than it did and become more spin-friendly, it just really stayed low more than anything and then just spat out of the footmarks. The red clay wickets tend to bounce a little bit more, but it's interesting if you look at some of the first-class games here in Mumbai recently that seamers can have quite an impact early in the match."
Good news for Jamieson and Southee – and that seam duo could become a trio as the Black Caps hunt for a historic series win.
