India ODIs:<\/b> New Zealand batting coach Luke Ronchi has welcomed the bowler-friendly conditions in the ongoing ODI series against India, describing the challenging surfaces as a refreshing departure from the high-scoring pitches that have become commonplace in one-day cricket.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Speaking at the pre-match press conference ahead of the third ODI, Ronchi said the assistance available to fast bowlers had offered both teams valuable preparation for the upcoming Test assignment, while also forcing batters to rethink their approach and adapt to conditions where runs have been harder to come by.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Asked if the conditions in the two concluded ODIs favoured the Test players to prepare for the two red-ball games, Ronchi said, \u201cTechnically, they will. That\u2019s traditionally what we have here for Test cricket, it\u2019s a lot greener surfaces, so in reality that Wellington surface was more of a Test type of surface.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cSo it\u2019s (about) grasping hold of that and realising that, and it will help both teams and I think it\u2019s quite cool. The bowlers have actually got the upper hand - there\u2019s nothing wrong with that. Like traditionally, you go around the world, especially in India, if teams don\u2019t make 400 (in an ODI), you\u2019re in trouble, so it\u2019s just ridiculous, so (it\u2019s good) to see the bowlers have an opportunity and get some (helpful) conditions, because you still have to bowl well on it and both teams have been doing that, so I think that\u2019s a cool thing to see as well.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The contrast has been particularly evident in the second ODI at Hamilton\u2019s Seddon Park, where New Zealand\u2019s batters had to contend with a surface that did not lend itself to the usual aggressive scoring patterns. Ronchi believed a total of around 200 would have been a substantial score, but said recognising that early enough and conveying the assessment across the batting line-up remained a key challenge for the side batting first.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the difficult nature of batting first and understanding, and that\u2019s where communication comes into it,\u201d he said. \u201cThe batters that are out there at the moment, you can tell quite quickly if a surface is quicker, if it\u2019s slower, if it\u2019s moving, and that\u2019s the communication those batters pass back to the next guy\u2019s batting or if we lose an early wicket then there\u2019s communication there, so it\u2019s making sure that that\u2019s going strongly.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI think if you stay quiet at that stage, that\u2019s where you get yourself into more trouble, so it\u2019s a skill in itself.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
With scoring rates continuing to rise across formats, Ronchi acknowledged that batters accustomed to targeting totals of 300 or more could find it difficult to adjust their expectations when conditions demanded patience. He stressed that teams needed to recognise when to rein in their attacking instincts, preserve wickets and look for opportunities to accelerate later in the innings.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cVery much, and it\u2019s not just one day - I think it\u2019s in any cricket at the moment, scoring rates are going up. So when it\u2019s not that, it\u2019s (about) realising, okay, we can pull back here, we don\u2019t need to be going at eight an over from ball one, three an over for the moment could be (fine), and then you can score more at the back end of any innings, once they have five (fielders) out (on the boundary) and those sorts of things, and the longer you bat, the easier hopefully it should become,\u201d Ronchi said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cBut again, there\u2019s not many batters from either side that have really made it look easy, especially the last game. Obviously Virat (Kohli) in that first game did that (he scored 74 in 51 balls), but again it\u2019s those moments in games that make a difference, to say, well how can we (approach this).<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cVery much, and it\u2019s not just one day - I think it\u2019s in any cricket at the moment, scoring rates are going up. So when it\u2019s not that, it\u2019s (about) realising, okay, we can pull back here, we don\u2019t need to be going at eight an over from ball one, three an over for the moment could be (fine), and then you can score more at the back end of any innings, once they have five (fielders) out (on the boundary) and those sorts of things, and the longer you bat, the easier hopefully it should become,\u201d Ronchi said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n
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