Bengaluru, Sept 1: Tim Southee warmed the bench as New Zealand got walloped by India in the first Test in Hyderabad. In the second Test, he replaced Chris Martin, the most experienced bowler in the Vettori-less Kiwi attack. He was expected to overturn the team’s miserable fortune and get the better of the talented Indian batting line-up. By the end of Day 2, the 23-year-old pacer had justified the faith put in him by his team with figures of three for 35 from his 15 overs.
Southee, who picked up important wickets of opener Gautam Gambhir, first Test centurion Cheteshwar Pujara and a dangerous looking Suresh Raina, addressed the media at the end of the day. Here’s what he had to say:
On New Zealand bowlers losing their hold on the game in the final session of the day
Obviously, it’s nice to bowl with the new ball and swing it, and we were lucky to pick up a few wickets there. India came back well after lunch as the ball got a bit older. The wicket is pretty good. So I guess now it’s a pretty important time for us with the second new ball to see if we can pick up the rest of the wickets.
On whether there was a lack of bite in the Kiwi bowling or the Indians batted really well
We were still creating chances and getting edges. I guess we didn’t build enough pressure through dot balls. But there were still chances with the edges. It’s just that the ball got a bit old and it wasn’t carrying to the fielders. I thought we bowled well. It just gets easier to bat as the ball gets older and unfortunately we couldn’t get it to reverse swing.
On whether he enjoys bowling with Trent Boult
I’ve played a lot with Trent in age-group cricket and domestic cricket. Doug [Bracewell] is my mate as well. So, it’s good to have both the guys here playing with me. It was a good spell with the new ball from both Trent and me.
On why he couldn’t get the ball to reverse swing
I don’t think it was a very abrasive surface, so the ball hasn’t scuffed up as much as we would have liked it to. That’s why we couldn’t get it to reverse.
On whether New Zealand’s total of 365 was a par score
We were very unlucky with Doug’s dismissal; he was playing very well and deserved to go on and get a big score. But those things happen. Yes, 400 would have been nice, but the contribution from the tail was a good effort and so was the way Kruger [van Wyk] batted. At the start of the day, we wanted a few more runs but whatever we have, they’re runs on the board.
On whether it’s easier for batsmen when the ball gets older
As the ball gets older, it gets softer and loses bounce. I guess it’s a bit easier to bat.
On whether New Zealand can win the Test on this wicket
It is still an early stage of the match and the wicket is in good condition. It depends on how quickly we get these last few wickets and how well we bowl with the new ball. It has turned the whole way through and that’ll be a massive part of how well we bat in the second innings. If we put some runs on the board and pick up some wickets tomorrow without too much damage, then we’re right in it.
