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SYDNEY - New Zealand are treating tomorrow's four-dayer against New South Wales as a cricket test match as they try to replicate India's blueprint for rattling the Australians.
The tourists tonight confirmed a shadow test team to face the reigning Sheffield Shield champions, with a four-pronged pace attack
of Chris Martin, Kyle Mills, Iain O'Brien and Tim Southee.
Captain Daniel Vettori will move up to No 7 in the batting order in the absence of the injured Jacob Oram (back), while allrounder Grant Elliott and paceman Mark Gillespie carry the drinks.
Senior paceman Martin said it was important they stamped their mark on NSW, without a swag of internationals like Brett Lee, Stuart Clark, Brad Haddin, Simon Katich, Phil Jaques and Nathan Bracken.
"It's the No 1 priority because there's no way we can hit that first test running without actually preparing like this is a test match," Martin said.
"We're going into it that way, there's a certain anxiety and tension at training to prepare for it."
The match at a spin-friendly SCG is essential for New Zealand's buildup for Thursday's first test in Brisbane, coming off a short tour of Bangladesh where most of the second test was lost to rain.
Australia arrived home last night after a 0-2 series loss in India and Martin said pacemen Ishant Sharma and Zaheer Khan had set the bar high for the New Zealand pacemen.
"I saw some incredible deliveries bowled. The level that Sharma and Zaheer were bowling at is something we need to look at ourselves.
"No matter how good you are, those balls get good players out and that sort of pressure is something we're all expecting to put on the Australians."
Martin was unsurprised by captain Ricky Ponting's confident assertion that his side would bounce back to win all five home tests against New Zealand and South Africa.
It was the standard welcome for all touring teams from a deservedly confident home side, Martin said.
"They'll definitely have a few points to prove. I don't know if they should keep reading their newspapers because they've been all over them, and they'll know in their own camp they just have to work a bit harder and get the ball back on the road."
New Zealand, ranked seventh in the world to Australia's one, will be clear underdogs for the two-test series.
Martin was part of the heavy 0-2 defeat here in 2004 and was confident that wouldn't be repeated.
"We're always undersold and we do surprise good team every now and then. Under Dan (Vettori) and John (Bracewell) we've actually got a bit more self-belief this time. We know we've got the firepower, it's a matter of stringing it together on a more day to day basis, which is basically what Australia does."
Martin hoped for a long bowl and put himself "through the pain barrier" at the SCG to prove his fitness after a month on the sidelines. He was fit and confident of being on track for Brisbane.
NSW will unveil 17-year-old, 2m-tall paceman Josh Hazlewood from Bendemeer, population 300, in a side with an average age of 22. Hazlewood has already been labelled "the new Glenn McGrath" and admitted he hardly recognised any of the New Zealand batsmen, except Ross Taylor.
Also there is prolific 19-year-old batsman Phillip Hughes, tipped as a test opener-in-waiting.
New Zealand: Daniel Vettori (captain), Jamie How, Aaron Redmond, Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum, Daniel Flynn, Kyle Mills, Tim Southee, Iain O'Brien, Chris Martin.
New South Wales (from): Dominic Thornely (captain), Phillip Hughes, Usman Khawaja, Peter Forrest, Steven Smith, Moises Henriques, Daniel Smith, Grant Lambert, Beau Casson, Nathan Hauritz, Burt Cockley, Josh Hazlewood.
- NZPA