“Yeah, I wasn’t expecting the weather we’ve had the last few days since I got here,” Latham said the day before the game. “And if you look at the forecast, it certainly looks similar to what we got today.
“So obviously the wicket is under cover for a longer period of time and it’s not necessarily as hot as we would normally expect out here, so that potentially allows the fast bowlers to come into play.”
“It’s hard to say because we haven’t really seen the wickets in terms of the teams we’re playing, but yes, depending on when we see the pitch tomorrow, we’ll definitely have both bases covered (spin and pace).”
Spin has been New Zealand’s kryptonite in the current World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. They come into the series after losing 2-0 against Sri Lanka in which they lost 37 of their 40 wickets to spinners.
Latham admitted the result in Sri Lanka was less than ideal but said New Zealand “did a lot of good things on that tour”. He pointed to the first Test in Galle where New Zealand were scored 340 and 211. They scored 88 in the first innings of the second Test but came back to score 360 in the second dig. But that didn’t stop them from losing in both tests.
“Yes, obviously the results were not ideal in Sri Lanka. I think the first Test was a fairly small margin in terms of defeat, but we actually did a lot of good things on that tour,” Latham said. “Of course it’s easy to look at the results, but from a batting perspective, I think you can take out the first innings of the second Test and see that we did a lot of good things there.
“We changed our approach a little bit in terms of how we played and how we developed and I thought we played really well and I guess coming here in India, the conditions are a little bit different.
“So hopefully we can give the seamers a bit more here in India and potentially make spin a bit more of a factor in the next few Test matches later on.”
This is Latham’s first assignment as regular Test captain after Tim Southee resigned in the aftermath of the Sri Lanka series. He had previously led New Zealand in nine Tests. His form in the WTC 2023-25 cycle was patchy with 368 runs conceded in 16 innings at 23.
“It’s definitely a huge and exciting privilege to be in this position,” Latham said. “Whether I’m a captain or captain, I’m always trying to do my best for the team and that’s certainly no different from being a captain.
“Yes, it’s a little more responsibility, but I feel fortunate to have been in this position before, to have captained here in India before, and to have done it at home as well. So I think like most people, guys, I’m in this job. I am very excited to get started and it has given me a bit of a boost since taking over.”
“There are a lot of different guys that play completely different ways, and for us it’s about guys going out there and expressing themselves as best as they can and trying to stick to their game plan as best they can.”
Latham wants his players to continue playing their natural game.
Aggression and intent were the hallmarks of the town in Test cricket, but New Zealand took a more traditional approach. In eight Tests of the WTC cycle, they have averaged 3.37. Latham agrees that teams around the world have taken a more aggressive route in Test cricket, but wants players to do what comes naturally to them.
“Yes, probably if you look around the world over the last 12 months, a lot of teams have taken the approach of being a little more aggressive and putting a little more pressure on the bowlers,” he said. “But if you look at our team as a whole, I think we all have a little bit of a different game plan.
“There are a lot of different guys that play completely different ways, and for us it’s about guys going out there and expressing themselves as best as they can and trying to stick to their game plan as best they can.”
New Zealand have never recorded a series win in India and Latham admitted his side would have to play “really well” to change that record. However, he is banking on New Zealand’s recent visit to India and exploration of the subcontinent to try to secure victory in the three-Test series.
“They know how to play in their situations,” Latham said. “I think when you look at India as a whole, you definitely look at the spinners when it comes to overcoming these conditions, but they have (Jasprit) Bumrah, (Mohammed) Siraj, obviously (Akash) Deep in the last few Test matches against Bangladesh. .
“So it’s a versatile side from a bowling point of view, they have a lot of winners who can take a game away pretty quickly.
“We will obviously have to play really well. We are looking forward to the challenge and hopefully we can draw on the experience we have had here the last few times we have been on tour.”
Ashish Pant is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo.
