KEY POINTS:
It came as a surprise to see Tim Southee selected in the place of Kyle Mills in the first test in Brisbane. While I have been an advocate for the inclusion of both players in a four-pronged pace attack, it was a positive move.
In his short career
to date, Southee has shown a knack of being able to pick up wickets. While he and Mills are roughly similar - in that they try to swing the ball away from the right-hander - Southee's inclusion was an attacking move.
Mills has proven himself a reliable, containing seamer and a safe choice but he has not shown that same wicket-taking flair over the duration of his career to date.
In the first innings, the conditions suited Southee but they were by no means diabolical and poor bowling would still be punished or, at the very least, not have threatened.
His test debut in Napier against England was similar in that a little freshness in the wicket kept the ball in a good state for swing for longer and he took advantage. In both games, he has found the second innings, in slightly flatter conditions, more challenging but has still been able to compete.
Everything about Southee suggests to me he is a player who bowls way beyond his years. The way he set up both Matthew Hayden and Simon Katich in the first innings, with perfectly pitched variation balls across them, was not the bowling of a young, nervous teenager in his first test against Australia.
He has been sheltered somewhat in his career so far. After he had a poor second test, the first test of the tour of England last winter, he was stood down but now I feel is the time to provide regular test time and also allow him the odd rough game. He's earned that right and that sort of experience will only improve him because I doubt it will hurt this level-headed youngster.
Going into this test, questions were being asked of the New Zealand bowling attack's ability to take 20 wickets. They answered those questions, albeit in conditions that provided assistance.
However, it was the way they operated that was most impressive. They have worked well as a unit in this test match. There is nice balance to the attack; Southee swinging in the ball away and nipping it, Chris Martin swinging it in to the right-handers and Iain O'Brien is highly accurate and persistent.
Vettori's bowling hasn't really been a major factor but he's chipped in as always and he will be thrilled with the efforts of his part-timers in Grant Elliot, and in particular Jesse Ryder, who did their jobs more than admirably.
Ryder continues to excite with the ball in this game. Nathan Astle was a great little asset in a bowling attack, under-used at times, and Ryder looks similar, although quicker. To have someone in the top order quite reliable, and at times quite threatening, is very handy indeed, especially with the injury cloud hanging over Jacob Oram's bowling right now.
But can this attack deliver the goods in batsman-friendly conditions that will greet them in Adelaide?