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Ronchi hits ton as Guptill fails in warm-up match
NEW DELHI: Makeshift opener Luke Ronchi, the New Zealand back-up wicket-keeper, struck a century as the visiting side used the final day of the three-day warm-up
NEW DELHI: Makeshift opener Luke Ronchi, the New Zealand back-up wicket-keeper, struck a century as the visiting side used the final day of the three-day warm-up tie against Mumbai on Sunday for whatever practice it could get.
The Ferozeshah Kotla pitch played slow but didn’t provide any of the turn and unpredictability the Kiwis expect in Kanpur’s Green Park, venue of the first Test starting on Thursday.
After the Kiwi batsmen tackled spin on the first day and their spinners practiced bowling quicker through the air the next day in a bid to pin batsmen to the crease, the tail-enders were tested on the final day before the game was drawn.
GUPTILL OUT CHEAPLY
After Mumbai declared on 464/8, left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner walked in at No 3. Though Martin Guptill fell early, fellow opener Ronchi, a dependable lower order bat, scored 107. Tailenders Doug Bracewell and Trent Boult too spent time at the crease.
Guptill’s shaky form coming into the tour — he scored 15 and nought in the warm-up — means Ronchi remains an option to open.
“They (tailenders) are very capable of doing that. In the Test matches, we are going to need everyone to contribute to win games. So the more you can gain from this sort of situation, the more you can bat with them and talk to them while they are batting, you can learn some things, you might be able to teach a few things as well,” Ronchi said.
In the context of the upcoming series, tail-enders performing with the bat could provide a boost for the visitors in the subcontinent conditions. Last year, when India beat South Africa in the Test series on turning tracks, it were the important contributions from Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin that resurrected India from a precarious situations. Had Jadeja and Ashwin failed to score with the bat, India could have faced problems.
An aggressive approach from the tail could put the pressure back on the bowling side. The quick changes and adjustments could lend the batsmen with bonus runs. At Mohali last year, Jadeja jumped out generously to loft the spinners over the head to collect quick runs. That troubled the SA tweakers and they were urged to change their lengths. Anything short on a slow turner gave time to Jadeja to whack it for a boundary.
With the Kanpur wicket also expected to assist spin, the Kiwi lower order took steps to bat accordingly. On Sunday, Santner, Bracewell and Boult kept charging down the track to disturb the spinners. Boult also tried playing reverse sweeps and got some quick runs.
“We have had training sessions in a three-day game, which is really good. We have got some net sessions left before the first test. The batters will try to hit as many balls as possible in the nets, and the bowlers will work out game plans so you go into game with confidence,” Ronchi said.
Brief scores: New Zealanders 324 & 235 (L Ronchi 107, BJ Watling 43, P Valsangkar 3/15, V Gohil 2/61, S Lad 2/11) v Mumbai 464/8
