JOIN USIndia batsman Murali Vijay felt it was difficult to score runs on the Green Park stadium pitch and insisted they have put up a good total of 291/9 on the opening day against New Zealand on Thursday.
“I think we are in a good position. We have put the runs on the board. So all we got to do now is go there and put pressure on them while bowling. It's a good total to play around with,” Vijay said.
“You never know how we go about it on day two when we are about to bowl. We have our plans, the wicket is on the slower side and it's going to be difficult to score runs, that's what I've experienced on the first day. So it will be difficult for them as well. With the quality of Ashwin and Jadeja in the side, it’s going to be a good day for us.”
India lost their way after a bright start and Vijay admitted that bad shot selection had a role to play in that.
“We got out to loose shots as well and the wicket was deteriorating too. We really got to be patient on this wicket I guess. It's a lesson learnt and hopefully we can put up a better show in the second innings.
Vijay acknowledged the variety in the New Zealand spin attack. “They have a good bowling attack. We knew this is going to be the plan for the NZ team, so we were well-prepared. I thought we could have capitalised a little more after tea.”
Mitchell Santner, who picked 3-77, said if bowled in the right areas, run-scoring can become difficult. “Indians batted well. Both Pujara and Vijay were quite positive. They had a plan against the spinners and they rotated the strike well. But we didn’t try anything different. We tried bowling in the good areas to build pressure and tried getting wickets. It didn’t spin early on but 291/9… not too bad,” he said.
“The more you’re on the wicket, the more you get used to it. It was a hard surface to score off if you put the ball on the right areas. It was a case of finding your length early.
It's also about trying to find a pace which is suitable for this wicket. Mark Craig bowled really well. As three spinners we are reasonably happy with our efforts.”
Santner admitted the wicket of Virat Kohli was among the key moments for New Zealand.
“The wicket of Kohli was a big wicket but down to Jadeja at nine they have got a very good batting line-up. So every wicket we got was pretty crucial in terms of taking the game away from you.”
DH News Service