New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori was content to emphasise the positives after his side arrived in Dubai on Wednesday ahead of its One-Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 International (T20I) series with Pakistan.
The BLACKCAPS arrived in the United Arab Emirates minus a coach following the departure of Andy Moles last weekend and also without several key players, including batsman Jesse Ryder and fast bowler Daryl Tuffey, because of injury.
But speaking after the squad enjoyed a light training session at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Vettori said the imminent start of the Bank Alfalah series for the Cool & Cool Cup allowed the team and himself to get the focus back on to cricket.
“It’s been a difficult situation with the resignation of Andy Moles but everyone has dealt with it and we know cricket goes on,” he said.
“We’re here to try and win and if anything it’s exciting to get out of New Zealand and get away from the scrutiny for a little bit and look to come and do what we do best.
“It’s been difficult (for me) from the perspective of having to front it all as captain and selector as well and the focus has been on me for an explanation so coming away here may take the heat out of that.”
Vettori was also keen to take the loss of several key players to injury in his stride.
“New Zealand teams have unfortunately had to deal with injury losses on numerous occasions and we understand we have to get up from them,” he said.
“We’ve shown ourselves to be resilient and it also creates opportunities for the likes of Scott Styris to come back into the team and prove his worth.
“If the guys here perform then it means we’ve got a strong squad to pick from and maybe that’s been one of our disadvantages (in the past), that we don’t have a pool of players to compete on the world stage and when injuries have taken hold we’ve struggled.
“So hopefully there’s a bit of a silver lining for us here,” he added.
The squad has arrived in the UAE off the back of reaching the final of the ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa (losing in that final to Australia) and Vettori said there was a positive mood among the players.
“We’ve come off a good (ICC) Champions Trophy and we’re hoping we can continue with that,” he said.
“There’s a confidence in the side even though we’ve lost players to injury and we still believe we are good enough to win.”
Vettori, who will be playing in the UAE for the first time, said he and his players were delighted with their first visit of the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
“We turned up at the ground today and it’s an amazing complex,” he said. “When you get the chance to play in these types of facilities then the guys get excited about it and that was the talk around the dressing room today.
“And it’s my first time playing here (in the UAE). I’ve had a few stop-overs and a few training camps but I’ve missed a couple of Sharjah tournaments either through being rested or injured and I’m excited about things too,” he added.
Bank Alfalah presents the Cool & Cool Cup with New Zealand facing Pakistan in three ODIs in Abu Dhabi on 3, 6 and 9 November followed by two T20Is at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on 12 and 13 November.
Dubai Sports City
