Chris Cairns: Kiwis con Aussies but still need to punish loose balls

COMMENT

The words "They don't stand a chance", would have been ringing in the ears of the Black Caps as they prepared for this test in Brisbane.

There have been many other forgettable quotes from our Australian counterparts previewing this series, almost a David and Goliath affair. Most interesting was when Black Caps' skipper Fleming admitted that he thought the series was one-sided and that Australia were very much favourites and man for man far stronger than his team. What we read in the media is often not the feeling within the camp, believe me.

When most teams tour Australia, they want to be seen as fronting up to Australia, not taking a backward step, so at press conferences they favour bravado and predict things that simply aren't true.

Effectively they are kidding themselves and trying to fill their squad with a belief they can compete. Can they live up to these expectations? More often than not, no. At the highest level of sport, the mental side of the game is 90 per cent and maybe Fleming and Bracewell felt they were achieving two objectives. Australia would relax and not be quite as switched on and it allowed the New Zealanders to relax without expectation and gain confidence.

I know that Flem loves playing Australia and he loves trying to plan for victory. He will vigilantly try and secure a method that enables him to get the best out of the resources at his disposal. What we see on the field is only a small part of what goes on in the planning process.

Our first innings never quite got where it should - 350 was a good score and with Richardson and Fleming dismissed cheaply, it was going to be hard. Both were removed by excellent bowling by Kasprowicz and not much can be done about that.

Where I think we can improve in the batting is our ability to put the bad ball away. I respect the ability of the Australian bowlers but they will still bowl a bad delivery. Putting the bad ball away does not mean smashing it to the boundary or heaving it over the infield, it means putting it in the gap, timing it to the fence.

Our batsmen currently have a philosophy of patience. There is nothing wrong with this against the Australians but we still have to be efficient against the bad ball. This will in turn increase our scoring rate. As for the rest of the test who knows?

Cracks are appearing on the pitch and this will create awkward movement, especially with the new ball. It should take turn as well. All this bodes well for the Black Cap philosophy that Australia's Achilles heel is the fifth day. Let's hope our batsmen can get us there.

Finally a word on world class allrounder, Jacob Oram. This performance will mean a lot to him as he hasn't played a great deal against Australia.

It was such an accomplished, mature display of patience and power - one that will give him huge confidence and take his game massively forward, psychologically. Just great to watch.


- THE HERALD ON SUNDAY