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BLACKCAPS senior batman Ross Taylor is set to lead an inexperienced batting line against the red hot Australian team in the first Test at the Basin Reserve on Friday.
The middle order batsman has 23 caps and will come in at number four, behind a Tim McIntosh, Peter Ingram and BJ Watling who have 14 between them.
Taylor said that the extra pressure wasn’t a burden and that he had faith in top order, “I know what I need to do personally and hopefully they can do their job and I come in later on. Whatever the game situation is, I have to bat accordingly. We’re playing Australia and it’s going to be a good challenge and I’m looking forward to that.”
Preparations have been intensive with longer than usual training sessions and experts called in to support the team as they prepare to take on the best in the world.
“We’re trying to bat as long as we can. We’re trying to simulate the game conditions as much as we can. Simulating drinks breaks and sessions as well.”
“We’ve got Martin Crowe here who’s been a big help to all the players and over the next couple of days we need to bat as much as we can and simulate what we are going to expect from Australians.
With an Australian bowling attack brimming with fast bowlers the batmen are expecting plenty of aggression but know that they need to bat time to wear them down and Taylor said that keeping them in the field for long periods is a their goal.
“They have used Mitchell Johnson as an attacking weapon and quite often when he’s come back he’s picked up a wicket and then Ricky has taken him off so he’s going to be a big factor for them and he’s bowled very well for the last 18 months to two years.
“Bollinger had a very good Test series over there against Pakistan and the West Indies and hopefully we can deny him.
“Harris is yet to make his Test debut so hopefully we can negate them and take them into four or five sessions and see how they are after bowling, not only with the wind behind them, but just being out in the park with that wind being blown around all day.”
With four Test centuries to his name, Taylor is keen to add another during this series, “They are the number one team in the world and it’s a good gauge of where you are as a player. I’ve scored a One-Day hundred against them and would love to put a Test match hundred to that.”
