Former New Zealand allrounder Craig McMillan said that he is aware how India have evolved in recent times. He again added that if New Zealand are to be called one of the best sides in the world then they need to do well against the No. 1-ranked Test side in the world.
“It’s big. This whole Indian tour is big after what happened in Australia,” McMillan told Radio Sports Breakfast. “Five Twenty20s to start and I know it’s not everyone’s favourite format of the game but we’ve got a T20 World Cup later in the year in October in Australia so straight away these five matches become important. Because of the performance in Australia we need to start winning again and get that support back.”
“They’re still trying to find in T20 what our best side is. We’ve just seen the Super Smash and there’s an opportunity for some young guys who performed in that to be given a chance. This Indian side are a power house. Doesn’t matter if it’s tests, ODIs, T20s, they are the real deal so it’s going to be a really intriguing tour. For New Zealand to get a pass mark for this tour they need to win two of the three series,” he added.
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New Zealand have recently faced a 0-3 whitewash against Australia in Tests. They are currently sixth in the World Test Championships points table with just one win from five games.
“What did we learn? We learned we are not as good as we thought we were. We were ranked two in the world, Australia were fifth but there was actually a big gap between both sides,” said Craig McMillan.
“If we want to qualify for the test championship final, which is a long way off as we are sixth on the table, we need to shake off the conservative style we’ve been playing and be more attacking in the way we go about things also with our selections as well,” Craig McMillan shared.
Despite the underwhelming performance against Australia, McMillan pointed out there were certain gains for New Zealand and they should capitalise on it for the India series.
“What was good? Tom Blundell. Got an opportunity, grabbed it with both hands and ran with it. Showed some grit and fight that was lacking from others. And Neil Wagner. What a champion he is. In the face of a fair bit of adversity in that series he was the only New Zealand bowler who stood up and out some fight into the Aussies. He’s finally getting the recognition he deserves now,” the former coach said.
“The other good thing I had on that list was the Kiwi fans who went across the Tasman in their droves and ended up having very little to cheer about and continued to support the team. They were just outstanding,” he concluded.
