Hadlee: England vulnerable to formidable world-class Kiwi line-up

Trent Boult (far left) has been described by Sir Richard Hadlee as being part of one of the best attacks in the world. Photo / Getty Images

One thing England learned at the World Cup was that statistics can lie and they would be wise to heed that painful lesson this week when they face probably the strongest New Zealand team to tour here.

This week's Investec test at Lord's starting tomorrow will be the 100th between the two countries but New Zealand have won only eight in more than 80 years of trying and their last series victory here was in 1999.

But when someone as well qualified as Sir Richard Hadlee describes Trent Boult and Tim Southee as the most formidable strike bowling partnership in New Zealand's history and that Kane Williamson will become the Black Caps' best-ever batsman, it is a sign confidence is high. Hadlee is not one to back his team out of blind patriotism. He believes Brendon McCullum has revitalised his team by instilling an Australian-like boldness into New Zealand's cricket. Gone are the days of dibbly-dobbly medium-pacers and blockers with the bat.

The result is this Kiwi team are ranked third in the world by the International Cricket Council in test cricket, two places higher than England, and are motivated by a sense of injustice that the England and Wales Cricket Board only sees them as good enough to play two tests this summer as an Ashes warm-up.

"I think England are there for the picking," said Hadlee. "If we play to our potential we can win. Self-belief is important because it has been a long time since we have won in England so history shows we are up against it.

"But we have all bases covered from our two strike bowlers, backup bowlers, and Kane Williamson is going to be our best batsman in our history.

"He is hungry for runs and adapted to all forms of the game. The middle order is pretty good with [Ross] Taylor and McCullum and in [Corey] Anderson at six we have an all-rounder. England are vulnerable at the moment and they have got to attack them. They [Southee and Boult] are getting better and better and, as a combination, in my view they will be our finest ever and most successful bowling combination.

"The fact they are working together and getting wickets together is because they complement each other by being so different. Southee is right-arm outswing and then Boult with the left-arm outswing and inswing. He bowls at pace and it leaves the batsmen having to make adjustments over after over. If you look at world attacks today they are right up there with the best. They might even be the best. They set the tone and pace of game for the Black Caps."

The last time New Zealand batted at Lord's they were blown away on the Saturday afternoon by one of Stuart Broad's wonder spells and were bowled out for 68. But in the two years since they have won four out of six series and drawn the other two. McCullum is lauded at home for leading his team to a World Cup final while England captain Alastair Cook is weighed down by inconsistent results and the Kevin Pietersen saga.

"When you compare Cook and McCullum it is apples and pears as captains. McCullum is so attacking and proactive whereas Cook is a more conservative captain," said Hadlee. "That is not a criticism. He is very thoughtful in the way he goes about his job as captain but clearly he is under pressure. If that is a chink in the England armour then New Zealand will look to exploit it.

"New Zealand have been very good on and off the field over the last two years. We have gone up in rankings in all forms of the game ..."

McCullum and the other New Zealand Indian Premier League players - Southee, Williamson, Anderson and Boult - have joined up with the squad and making the transition from white-ball cricket in India to red-ball test cricket in England will be a huge challenge. Southee and Boult bowled with the Duke ball in the nets in India but short cuts to acclimatisation are not guaranteed to work.

Hadlee added: "We have been asking for a long time to get more than a two-match test series. It irks us and as we want to make the point that if we win this series and win it well then in future years the ECB might encourage a three-match series."

Root thanks Moores for return to form

In-form England batsman Joe Root says he has former coach Peter Moores to thank for his rapid rise to international prominence.

Root was dropped at the end of England's Ashes whitewash defeat under Andy Flower's regime last year, but the Yorkshire star went on to average almost 95 in tests during Moores' second tenure. And after 12 months in which he has made more than 1100 test runs, as well as hitting three one-day international hundreds, Root was voted England's 2014-15 player of the year by members of the media yesterday.

As he prepares to try to continue his brilliant form in the corresponding test a year on, against New Zealand at Lord's starting tomorrow, the 24-year-old needed no prompting to single out the help of Moores, who lost his job following an embarrassingly early exit from the World Cup and a disappointing drawn test series in the West Indies.

England will be coached on a caretaker basis by Moores' assistant Paul Farbrace in the back-to-back tests against New Zealand.

- AAP