India and New Zealand will lock horns in a two-Test series from Thursday. Meanwhile, NZ head coach Gary Stead has hinted at a three-spin attack ahead of the opening Test in Kanpur.
After whitewashing 3-0 in the just-concluded Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is), India will take on New Zealand in a two-Test series, starting Thursday. The opening Test will be held at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur. Although the track is generally batting-friendly, the soil in this region assists the spinners more than the pacers.
Consequently, NZ head coach Gary Stead has hinted that his side could field three spinners. During the pre-series press conference, he noted that the visiting teams usually don't win here since most go with four seamers and a spinner, which does not work on this track. "You may see three spinners playing in this game, and that will be decided once we have a look at the surface," he said, reports PTI.
Speaking on the gameplay, Stead stated that the side needs to stick to the basic principles of Test cricket, i.e., stay competitive for a long time. He also reckoned that there would be nothing to take away from India's previous home Test series, with the four matches limited to two venues. He also pointed that the contrast in clay makes a difference.
NZ will be playing the Tests without enough practice games. However, Stead has reasoned that the current COVID situations make it challenging to get enough practice games. At the same time, he also feels that both India and New Zealand are on the same boat, having not played Tests for a long time and have been chiefly involved in T20Is of late.
Squads
India: Ajinkya Rahane (c), KL Rahul (wk), Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara (vc), Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), KS Bharat (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Jayant Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna.
New Zealand: Kane Williamson (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham (wk), Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips (wk), Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Will Somerville, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner and Will Young.