‘India’s brand of cricket makes it difficult for touring teams’

BENGALURU: Injuries to key players don’t affect India and the brand of cricket it plays in its backyard makes it “very difficult” for visiting teams, New Zealand head coach Gary Stead here on Sunday.

New Zealand will take on India in a three-Test series, which pacer Mohammed Shami is set to miss. The series-opener will begin here on Wednesday.

Stead said the depth in talent in Indian cricket ensures that the national side remains unaffected by the unavailability of players.

“If they have an injury it does not seem to affect them like other teams. There is someone else who can come in who is equally adept,” Stead told the media here.

“They have the mass of numbers they can call, but they are also very skilful and are an experienced team with a lot of Test caps.”

“They play a brand of cricket that makes it very difficult for you over here, but that is the challenge that is ahead of us,” he added.

Stead revealed former captain Tim Southee, whose position in the playing XI is being debated in the Kiwis camp ahead of the series, is working with footage from previous India tours.

“From my conversations with Tim, he recognised he has not been at his best but there is certainly no desire to not get back there,” the New Zealand coach said.

“He is working hard in the background, he is doing everything he can and trying to rediscover what that little thing he feels is missing.”

“There are a couple of technical points Tim is working on. He is working with (Jacob) Oram around them. We have looked back at quite a bit of videos from previous years and times he has played in India and had success.”

“It is just (about) trying to rediscover that and find a little bit, I guess you could call it snap back into his action.”

Stead said Southee, who stepped down as New Zealand captain ahead of the India tour, took the decision in the “best interests” of the team.

He said, “Like all Test tours and series, we have reviews at the end of it and Tim and I had a conversation around it, then he made the decision to stand down.”

“He thought it was in the best interests of the team. I supported his decision around that.”

Stead says Southee’s resignation allows the management to look at other options.