MUMBAI: When New Zealand landed in India a month and a half ago, they knew what was ahead of them. A one-off Test against Afghanistan in Noida, two Tests in Sri Lanka followed by a three-match series in India — put it all together, it was a six-match Test tour in the subcontinent. That is how they looked at it.
A lot has unravelled in the time since. The drama that happened in Noida with the outfield, two tough defeats in Sri Lanka, change of guard in captaincy before coming back to India and an historic series win against the subcontinental juggernauts.
As they are about take on India for one last time in this tour, Tom Latham, the captain who took over from Tim Southee after the Sri Lanka series, is sitting at the Wankhede Stadium press conference room as happy as he has ever been. They have already achieved something no other team has in the past decade and have a chance at doing something no one ever has — winning every match of a Test series in India (three matches or more).
How did they get here? By sticking to their plans while challenging themselves irrespective of the result. “Even though the results didn't go the way we wanted in Sri Lanka, we did a lot of good stuff. Coming here we wanted to keep things simple, play our brand of cricket as best we can and give ourselves a good chance. I think it's just shown us that the brand that we play, we can be successful in these conditions. Every individual has a slightly different plan in terms of how they like to go about things. I think it's just them giving themselves 100% backing in terms of the way that they play, they will be successful,” said Latham.
Indeed, as much as it is a collective performance, different individuals have stepped up and chipped in the past couple of weeks. From Devon Conway to Latham to Rachin Ravindra to Tim Southee to Mitchell Santner they have all done their part on various occasions. If it was the seamers in Bengaluru, spinners took charge in Pune with Rachin and Conway leading the batting charts. Apart from making history with the results, what this tour has done for New Zealand is set the tone for the future.
At a time when players are opting out of central contracts, the confidence the youngsters have shown on the field has given a peak into what lies ahead for Black Caps in the coming decade. And another win in Mumbai could just be the stepping stone for them to build on.