Matt Henry, the pacer from New Zealand was ecstatic about his five-wicket haul on Thursday, October 17 but he felt New Zealand should be a little careful and not drop their focus to ensure a winning cause in the first Test against India. He, along with fellow pacer William O’Rourke, who managed to take four wickets, played a pivotal role in ripping apart the Indian batting line-up on the second day of the match. In the post-match conference, Henry was pleased but didn’t let his hair down completely. While reflecting on his bowling strategy, he opined that they discussed about being relentless and patient with the ball, and it worked for them. He also appreciated his Canterbury teammate O’Rourke for this significant contribution, recalling how his height upgrades the bowling attack of his team.

New Zealand’s Bowling Strategy

“Well, I think we were going to bat first too, so probably a good toss to lose. It was quite nice when those clouds started coming in after the toss was done, but I think we were expecting it to be probably a flatter wicket, but there was plenty of assistance this morning, so it was great that we could make the most of it,” said Henry after the day’s play.

“We talked about being relentless with the ball, and being patient, and I think that was probably something that we looked to do, and thankfully it came off,” he said reflecting on the bowling approach against India

“When you come here, you’re watching how the best in the world operate, and usually discipline is second to none. The accuracy, they’re just relentless. It may not happen in the first spell or the second spell, but they keep coming back, and the same as India have done it for a number of years. And watching how they go about their work here, they bring the stumps in play, and they’re able to make themselves a threat throughout, whether it’s a flat wicket or not. So coming here, that was something we discussed, was making sure that we are relentless and try to apply as much pressure as long as we can,” he further explained.

What X Factor Does William O’Rourke Have?

“I think his height’s the X factor right there, isn’t it? He gets a lot of bounce and he uses that height at the crease as well, so as you see, he gets a lot of steep bounce off quite a full length as well, making it really uncomfortable, especially with the ball coming into the right-hander,” Henry said.

“I think something that is great about him is that he keeps his pace up as well, he keeps coming in for the team, and he’s done that for Canterbury, and there’s no surprise that he’ll do the same when he came up to New Zealand. He’s just had a fantastic start, and I’m absolutely stoked for him,” he said.

On Day 2 stumps, New Zealand were at 180/3, Devon Conway played an incredible knock of 91 runs. Both Daryl Mitchell (14) and Rachin Ravindra (22) will be looking forward to build a strong partnership and bring up a big score which can lead them towards win.