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It strikes us that New Zealand are a side who can benefit from a good old-fashioned batting line-up with a trio of blockers at the top of the order followed by the strokemakers.
Kiwi batsmen do tend to be one or the other and an early stultathon will set the scene for Ross Taylor, Jesse Ryder and Brendon McCullum, who are all too good against unthreatening bowling to waste earlier on when they’ll need to play the odd forward defensive.
Tim McIntosh was the new man at the top of the order and promptly took 45 minutes to get off the mark. That’s the stuff, Tim. You leave that ball. Leave it to hell. Leave its arse off and then prop forward with no intent whatsoever.
Then do it some more.
A series of leaves from King Cricket readers too.
Tim McIntosh’s influence is astounding.
McIntosh’s first test innings did take an inordinate length of time to get underway, and I agree wholeheartedly with the idea that New Zealand could use a Richardson-esque dour blocker at the top of the order. Actually, anywhere in the order, really. Just plug that end, dammit.
But I do wonder if Mac’s your man. I was in the same year as him at school and he was quite the prodigy, in the first eleven from third form (a 13-year-old playing against 17- and 18-year-olds) and, from memory, he broke school records which had previously had names like Crowe and Greatbatch attached. At first-class level he tends to get in and then score much quicker than the four-day norm too.
Which is not to say he won’t end up leaving the hell out of it, just that his pedigree suggests a rather different outcome.
OH! I do apologise O king. Must have dozed off. Can’t think what caused that. Was it something that you said?
Is that the time? I must get on with some IRL stuff now.
Maybe everyone’s reading Iain O’Brien’s blog – he seems closer to the action than your neck of cyber space. And it is the big series we’ve all been waiting for…