New Zealand wait on ‘crook’ Williamson

Match facts

September 30-October 4, 2016 Start time 0930 local (0400 GMT)

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One-nil down is a bad place to be for a Test team in India. Worse still if you are playing back-to-back games. The memories are too fresh. The heat too invasive. That one ball spins but the other not so much is basically just too much. In 83 years and 249 matches, only twice has a team won the series from this predicament. And New Zealand have to go up against history with their best player feeling “crook”.

Kane Williamson was down with a bug and was unable to train at Eden Gardens on the eve of the match. At the pre-match press conference though, Tom Latham said there was “no discomfort” to his captain and added “he is just resting up and getting right for tomorrow.” India’s injury worries, on the other hand, seem to have dissipated with news that R Ashwin is likely to be fit. And with Ravindra Jadeja unlikely to lose his accuracy, they could well sit back and hit autopilot.

The pitch was said to have some grass cover and was expected to assist the batsmen early on. And since it would also break up as the game goes on, first-innings runs will be crucial. Helpfully that’s when Cheteshwar Pujara and M Vijay average more than 65. Should they win in Kolkata, India will claim the No. 1 ranking once again.

New Zealand weren’t decimated in Kanpur. They had two bad periods of play which need putting aside. Only, the human mind, when told not to do something, tends to … Let’s put it this way. If asked not to think of an elephant in pig tails, what do you do? Perhaps that was why Williamson and coach Mike Hesson advised their players to simply be vigilant for longer and to concentrate on making good starts. That isn’t a put down, nor is it generic feedback. Those are words of understanding and they provide direction. But will they still help New Zealand if they are forced to walk onto Eden Gardens – for the first time in 51 years – without their captain?

Form guide

India WDWDWNew Zealand LLDWW

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