The ICC World Test Championship final has seen New Zealand make some interesting changes for the second Test against England in Edgbaston, with Kane Williamson sitting out of the match.
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New Zealand are playing their last game before the final of the ICC World Test Championship against India. The second and final Test against England in Edgbaston has seen some forced changes. Kane Williamson has been rested due to a niggle in his elbow. BJ Watling will not be part of the match due to a back injury. With Mitchell Santner not playing, Trent Boult has slotted back in the side. Kyle Jamieson and Tim Southee have been rested keeping in mind the ICC World Test Championship final.
The side selected for the second Test against England is a reflection of the priorities. They are desperate to win against England but they also have one eye on the final against India. Jamieson being rested for the final is a good move considering he played the IPL, was in the Maldives bio-bubble and also bowled close to 30 overs in Lord’s. But, resting Tim Southee seems to be a bit of a gamble.
Tim Southee was not part of the IPL. He was coming after two months of rest into the game against England in Lord’s. He took six wickets in the first innings and became the first New Zealand bowler since Sir Richard Hadlee to feature twice in the Lord’s honours board. Southee is predominantly a rhythm bowler. Resting him might prove to be a risky proposition. It is understood that New Zealand need to keep their best bowlers fit for the game against India.
But, dropping Southee for Edgbaston could rob him of rhythm. New Zealand do not play much Tests and that is why it was important for New Zealand to not make so many changes. The loss of BJ Watling and Kane Williamson due to injury is a sheer case of bad luck. But, with Mitchell Santner also out, the Edgbaston line-up is definitely not New Zealand’s best.
Kane Williamson, the captain of the New Zealand team, has been undergoing a rare lean patch. In the entire five-match T20I series against Australia, Williamson scored just one fifty. In the IPL, he managed just one score of 50+. At Lord’s, he was woefully out of touch with 13 and 1. This is perhaps the leanest phase of Williamson’s career. Just before the final of the ICC World Test Championship, this does not bode well for New Zealand.
Williamson forms the bedrock of the side in many ways. Before Lord’s, he had hit two double hundreds against West Indies and Pakistan that helped New Zealand seal a spot in the ICC World Test Championship final. An elbow injury that has been plaguing Williamson for some time is not the right kind of news New Zealand would want.
New Zealand will be aware of the potency of the Indian bowling attack in these conditions in Southampton. Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma and even Mohammed Siraj will be a handful. These bowlers do not mind bowling in any condition. There is even talk of Siraj replacing Ishant and donning the role of the workhorse in Southampton. To accommodate the likes of Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin in the side, the talk of three pacers is doing the rounds.
If Ashwin and Jadeja are included, then it presents New Zealand with a different conundrum. Ross Taylor and Colin de Grandhomme struggle against Jadeja while Ashwin has a great record against left-handers and Williamson. With the New Zealand team having three left-handers and three right-handers in the batting line-up, the spin dup will certainly cause them troubles.
New Zealand were assisted by the conditions when they thrashed India in February 2020. However, they may necessarily not have the conditions in their favour in Southampton.
The problem of perhaps playing too many games before the major final is the risk of peaking too early. New Zealand might be wanting to expose too much of their cards for India to work them out. With injuries mounting, New Zealand might find themselves on the backfoot. Playing three Tests in 20 days with only a four-day rest period might bite New Zealand hard in the contest against India.
The Indian cricket team, on the other hand, are practicing in Southampton and will be out of quarantine on Saturday. Virat Kohli and the team will raise their intensity after 12th. New Zealand might look jaded by the time they reach Southampton. A loss in Edgbaston might not put them in the right frame of mind heading into the ICC World Test Championship final.
India are desperate to break their eight-year jinx of ICC events heading into the major Test championship. Perhaps, New Zealand might arrive in Southampton fatigued. Sometimes, too much practice can also be fatal and it might prove to be the case for New Zealand. The start that they have got in Edgbaston is not looking too great. New Zealand will have to be immensely strong mentally if they have to overcome this situation.
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