JOIN US New Zealand bowling coach Shane Jurgensen praised his bowling unit and backed it to come back good after a Pune meltdown. Trent Boult took a four-for in Mumbai to restrict India to 280/8 which New Zealand chased down with six wickets to spare but the home attack returned the compliment in Pune.
“I was really happy with the way that we bowled in the first game in Mumbai,” said Jurgensen while analysing the performance of his bowlers in the first two matches. “Traditionally, Mumbai pitches are pretty good ones for batting. And I thought that we adjusted pretty well under extreme conditions of weather and climate.
You know, first game in this type of weather, coming from New Zealand, was a really impressive performance. In game two, we just didn’t quite get things right from the start. That’s one thing that we really learnt in taking into the next game is making sure that we start well with the ball and we didn’t quite do that the other night,” he said.
The hot and humid conditions have been tough physically for the Kiwis who had been in Mumbai for about a week during which they played two practice matches.
“I think it’s more about getting your head around it,” noted Jurgensen on how to cope with harsh weather. “As a player, you need to be as fit as you can. I know the guys take a lot of pride in their fitness. I think a really good example is Trent Boult and how he was able to bowl. It was an outstanding performance in those conditions. The fact that he was able to bowl exceptionally well throughout ten overs in those conditions is his ability and the peak fitness that he is in at the moment,” he explained.
Heading into the decider Jurgensen termed Sunday’s game as a great opportunity for New Zealand. “I think the key for us is to make sure execute those little things that we do and don’t look too far ahead,” he emphasised. “It’s basically 600 balls we got to work really hard on. An extra day just gives us a little bit of break, guys to freshen up and hit the ground running. Then we got training and the game. There is no doubt that there is a lot of confidence that we have been playing well so far.”