Cricket: Black Caps coach Gary Stead reflects on rise to top of world test rankings

Black Caps coach Gary Stead is taking the time to appreciate the heights his team has scaled.

After their impressive win over Pakistan by an innings and 176 runs in Christchurch this week, the Black Caps became the world's No 1 ranked test cricket side for the first time.

"It's a pretty special thing," Stead said. "There are a lot of people and a lot of expertise has gone in to getting us to where we are and I think the guys paid tribute to those people that have come before them to get them to this stage.

"For me, I'm very, very proud of the way the team has developed and the way they continue to look to get better."

After New Zealand ascended to the top of the test cricketing world, some commented on the side's shaky form away from home in recent years. While they have now won 17 straight tests on home soil, their form abroad has not matched. Recently, their three-match series in Australia in the 2019/20 campaign was a whitewash in which they lost all three tests by more than 200 runs.

Stead took the criticism in his stride, and said it was a feature of world cricket that winning away from home was tough.

"Yeah, we weren't at our best last year against Australia, but I can remember a few other test wins that we have done really well in the UAE [against Pakistan] and Sri Lanka," Stead said.

"Every place you go, it's very hard to win away from home. It's something we've talked about as a team as well as ensuring all test wins are special, but especially ones you can win away from home."

The Black Caps have become the world's top ranked test team for the first time. Photo / Photosport

While the country's cricket fans were revelling in the historic achievement, New Zealand's hold on the position could prove to be short-lived, with the results of the ongoing series between Australia and India impacting how the rankings take shape after its conclusion.

The Black Caps' test season ended following the second test against Pakistan, with the players now set to return to their domestic teams – following a short lay-off – ahead of a busy schedule in late February and March which sees five Twenty20s against Australia and three T20s and three ODIs against Bangladesh.

"All our players, after the test series, will have a period of rest," Stead explained.

"Some will be quite short, only two or three days, depending on what they feel they need while some of the guys, like the bowlers in particular who have had big workloads – all the seamers bowled 50-plus overs in the Mt Maunganui test and then backed it up [in Christchurch] with a good number of overs – they'll have at least a week to 10 days before they start back again with the Super Smash."