Racing
League
Rugby
Cricket
Golf
Motorsport
Combat Sports
Football
Netball
Basketball
Other Sports
Sport Nation
Live sport on SN this weekend“Break this curse”: It's been 31 long years against Australia for the Blackcaps
Ian Smith • February 28th, 2024 10:33 am
The first Test at the Basin Reserve is just one sleep away.
Both the Blackcaps and Australia will be wrapping up their final preparations today - this is when you get serious, you go to the nets and start thinking about what's going to happen on Thursday and how you're going to try and counter it.
Australia's last outing was a major hiccup at The Gabba, where the West Indies' new hero Shamar Joseph handed them their butts with an amazing 7/68.
Whilst they stood afterwards and acknowledged with limp applause that great West Indies win, it was already building for Day 1 at The Basin and no thought of having time off for that amazingly successful group of cricketers - back on track is the only answer, the goal is to retain the World Test Championship.
For the Blackcaps, it's been nigh on 31 years since their last big win over 'big brother' on New Zealand soil - that was at Eden Park and the mighty Tony Blain (24 not out) secured the winning runs with Ken Rutherford (53 not out) to beat Australia by 5 wickets. 'Rudder' these days is biding his time in Brisbane, now and then seen at the Queens Arms pub in the Fortitude Valley.
This Blackcaps unit possesses one truly world class operator, one who has been, and a number who could be. Collectively they have more ability, with ease, than the West Indies. And their only one devastating spell away from getting that desired belief that they will need - one blast at the Basin, and we're not talking about a southerly breeze here.
Take your pick: Matt Henry, Tim Southee, Will O'Rourke, or whoever - who cares? A combination of all the above would be just fine.
Get them on a dirty green seamer! Someone break into the groundskeeper's hut and borrow his mower for a few days. Take your chances on a pitch that has more sideways movement than... God, I don't even know what has great sideways movement.
Let the bowlers win it, let the limousine be booked.
Let them drink copious quantities of champagne atop Mount Victoria as champions and let them break this damn curse. It's way, way long overdue.
Join SEN Cricket for ball-by-ball commentary of the first Test between New Zealand and Australia, live from the Basin Reserve. Coverage begins Thursday at 8am AEDT/10am NZDT - available across the SEN and SENZ network, and the SEN/SENZ app.
