Tom Latham's dismissal came while attempting to reverse-sweep Jack Leach. Photo / Photosport
Tom Latham's dismissal came while attempting to reverse-sweep Jack Leach. Photo / Photosport
It’s not a technical issue. Bazball isn’t getting in their heads. They haven’t been deceived by quick-moving matches.
Black Caps batting coach Luke Ronchi dismissed several theories about his charges’ recent woes, but answers were scarce as those batsmen readied for their role in saving this series.
Over the nextthree days at the Basin Reserve, New Zealand will need to produce an epic rescue mission if they wish to snap a seven-test winless run and avoid the end of a 10-series unbeaten streak at home.
Trailing by 297 runs with three wickets remaining in their first innings - after the top order once more crumbled against England - any rearguard recovery seems unlikely.
The Black Caps lost their fifth wicket at an average score of 63 in three innings this series, and only a battling century from Tom Blundell prevented further carnage at Mount Maunganui.
A couple more will be required for the hosts to somehow win this test and square the series. More pertinently, they must discover where it’s all been going wrong.
Allaying concerns about the collective approach, Ronchi pinpointed one problem as a lack of trust in the individual approach, casting doubt into batters’ heads and causing unseemly dismissals.
It’s one thing for Michael Bracewell to chip a simple return catch to Stuart Broad; in his sixth test, the all-rounder still looks unsettled with bat in hand. But it’s quite another for Kane Williamson to wave errantly at one of the few James Anderson balls that strayed from a good line.
Black Caps batting coach Luke Ronchi. Photo / Photosport
The hosts can tip those baggy black caps in the direction of Anderson and Stuart Broad, third and fifth on the all-time test wicket list. But when Jack Leach is routinely removing recognised batsmen, pedigree assumes only so much blame.
“It’s never a technical thing - it just comes down to trusting what you want to do,” Ronchi said. “It’s been disappointing, because I think guys are struggling with that at times.
“But that’s the message we’re going to keep giving them - to trust their skills. They’ve all done it before.
“There’s no need to panic about things, we’ve still got the rest of this innings and another innings, so it’s just going about their business the way they have done for a long time.”
England have changed the business of batting under Brendon McCullum, runs and declarations coming with greater haste. But Ronchi believes the Black Caps have been affected by neither their opposition’s scoring speed nor their insistence on advancing a game.
“[Bazball] is a phrase that’s been thrown around, but from a cricketer’s point of view, I don’t think many people take too much interest in it,” Ronchi said. “We want to go out and play our style of cricket.
“We know how to bat on a Basin wicket - we’ve played here lots of times, made lots of runs. It’s about going out there each time you want to bat and play it our way.
“The way it is at the moment, the game’s moving on really quickly. Whenever it is, the guys are always ready to bat. That’s their jobs - to go and bat.”
Few would be satisfied with their jobs on day two, but the reverse-sweep dismissals of Tom Latham and Henry Nicholls particularly stung. Ronchi said that pair had been attempting to apply pressure on Leach and keep the score moving, though there was a need to pick their spots.
“The way cricket is these days, you want to try to score. But it’s also understanding that you don’t need to score from every ball. You can bat for lengths of time.”
Providing the rain clears in Wellington, there will be plenty of time to occupy.
