Watch out, Shreyas!

New Zealand pace ace Tim Southee insists visitors have a plan to counter Kanpur Test centurion Iyer at Wankhede

Mumbai boy Shreyas Iyer disturbed New Zealand’s strategy by scoring 105 and 65 in his debut Test at Kanpur last week. However, the right-hander must be prepared to counter new plans drawn up by the visitors in the second Test beginning at the Wankhede Stadium today. Kiwi pacer Tim Southee acknowledged Iyer’s sound technique, but cautioned him to be ready for a fresh 
challenge.

Brilliant knock

“He [Iyer] played exceptionally well, for someone to come on and play like that on debut was brilliant. We’ve got a little more information on him now. It’s not easy to target someone with the short ball on such slow surfaces. We need to do some homework on them,” Southee, 32, who has claimed 322 wickets from 80 Tests, said during a virtual press conference on the eve of the game. 

Tim Southee

NZ offie William Somerville, who came as night watchman at No. 3 in the second innings in the drawn Kanpur Test, occupied the crease for over two hours, scoring 36. Left-arm spinners—Rachin Ravindra (unbeaten 18 off 91 balls) and Ajaz Patel (2 not out off 23 balls) played crucial roles in saving the Test too. When asked how the Kiwis, particularly their lower-order batsmen, prepared to overcome India’s spin attack the way they did, Southee replied: “The guys knew that spin was going to play a big role in this part of the world. Everyone’s preparation was different. They showed a lot of courage in the first Test. It’s a quality spin attack and we know we have to be on top of our game in the coming week.”

Also Read: IND v NZ 1st Test: Shreyas Iyer raises the bar higher

NZ have some good memories of Wankhede after John Wright led them to a 136-run win over Dilip Vengsarkar’s India in November 1988. 

‘We’ll try and give our best’ 

Speedster Richard Hadlee’s 10-wicket match haul and off-spinner John Bracewell’s 6-51 in the second innings were highlights of that triumph, and Southee was happy to hear about NZ’s history here. “I guess it’s always nice to hear of the history of the game and New Zealand doing well here [in Mumbai]. But that was a long time ago, so a lot has changed since. We’ll just try and give our best over the next five days,” added Southee.

Also Read: Shreyas Iyer: Happy with performance, but win would have been icing on cake

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