1
00:00:09,093 --> 00:00:11,973
Speaker 1: You're listening to a podcast from News Talk sat B.

2
00:00:12,373 --> 00:00:15,173
Speaker 1: Follow this and our wide range of podcasts now on

3
00:00:15,333 --> 00:00:19,813
Speaker 1: iHeart Radio.

4
00:00:20,093 --> 00:00:24,373
Speaker 2: Take another pat It's a trick, it is out, the

5
00:00:24,453 --> 00:00:29,893
Speaker 2: test is over. Shouldn't have smokes a beauty? It is

6
00:00:29,893 --> 00:00:33,693
Speaker 2: out and hearing guys, This delivery has in us of the.

7
00:00:33,773 --> 00:00:39,853
Speaker 3: Bold on the Front Foot with Brian Waddell and Jeremy Coney,

8
00:00:40,173 --> 00:00:46,733
Speaker 3: powered by News Talks head B at iHeart Radio.

9
00:00:47,253 --> 00:00:49,693
Speaker 2: Should we be surprised that Darl Mitchell has led New

10
00:00:49,813 --> 00:00:53,933
Speaker 2: Zealand to an emphatic victory over India? Hi, thank you

11
00:00:53,973 --> 00:00:56,773
Speaker 2: for joining us on the front foot with razine premium

12
00:00:56,893 --> 00:01:00,453
Speaker 2: quality paints and stains. They're no surprise to me. He's

13
00:01:00,493 --> 00:01:03,253
Speaker 2: being the backbone of the black cat patting on many

14
00:01:03,293 --> 00:01:08,533
Speaker 2: occasions recently and in all the formats, along with the

15
00:01:08,613 --> 00:01:13,493
Speaker 2: eyes in India post mortem across England, the yess failure

16
00:01:13,613 --> 00:01:19,573
Speaker 2: continues under the microscope, seemingly unending. And what's the recipe

17
00:01:19,613 --> 00:01:20,453
Speaker 2: for a good testure.

18
00:01:21,093 --> 00:01:21,933
Speaker 4: We'll also have the.

19
00:01:21,933 --> 00:01:24,093
Speaker 2: Highs and lows of twenty twenty five. One of the

20
00:01:24,173 --> 00:01:26,613
Speaker 2: highs of twenty twenty five is being able to do

21
00:01:26,693 --> 00:01:29,093
Speaker 2: on the front foot with Jeremy Coney every week. I

22
00:01:29,173 --> 00:01:34,533
Speaker 2: feel I'm on a high, JC, I'm on a high.

23
00:01:34,573 --> 00:01:36,373
Speaker 5: Well done. Will you stay there as long as you

24
00:01:36,453 --> 00:01:40,733
Speaker 5: can watch? You need a bit of height, So that's good,

25
00:01:40,813 --> 00:01:43,773
Speaker 5: that's absolutely fine. You'll be able to do those hedges

26
00:01:43,813 --> 00:01:45,853
Speaker 5: around your place, those trees.

27
00:01:46,453 --> 00:01:48,893
Speaker 2: Yes, I can have a bod of your here as well.

28
00:01:49,373 --> 00:01:52,933
Speaker 5: Yeah now, and I need it all now, mate, I

29
00:01:53,053 --> 00:01:54,533
Speaker 5: tell you yeah.

30
00:01:54,733 --> 00:01:58,853
Speaker 2: Mitchell's eighth od I hundred helped turn the game around

31
00:01:58,973 --> 00:02:01,493
Speaker 2: for the black Caps one all. I'll be heading into

32
00:02:01,493 --> 00:02:05,493
Speaker 2: the final match at Indoor, but I was a little

33
00:02:05,533 --> 00:02:09,213
Speaker 2: bit reluctant to see any value in this one day series,

34
00:02:09,253 --> 00:02:12,533
Speaker 2: and I still have my reservations about various aspects. But

35
00:02:12,613 --> 00:02:16,573
Speaker 2: when you see a partnership like that against India and

36
00:02:16,653 --> 00:02:19,013
Speaker 2: what they were able to do against the spinners Today's

37
00:02:19,053 --> 00:02:21,613
Speaker 2: dur and coldy, you know you've got to give a

38
00:02:21,613 --> 00:02:24,293
Speaker 2: lot of credit to young but even more credit, I

39
00:02:24,333 --> 00:02:27,893
Speaker 2: think to Daryl Mitchell. He's the powerhouse of our lineup

40
00:02:27,933 --> 00:02:30,253
Speaker 2: at the moment without some of the key players missing.

41
00:02:30,853 --> 00:02:33,893
Speaker 5: It's a pretty good good effort. I mean he's playing

42
00:02:34,253 --> 00:02:40,413
Speaker 5: very confidently at the moment, aggressively, scoring quickly, wide range

43
00:02:40,453 --> 00:02:43,373
Speaker 5: of shots, hasn't he. He swept a lot last night.

44
00:02:43,413 --> 00:02:47,573
Speaker 5: He got those little sweeps, going over and taking advantage

45
00:02:47,693 --> 00:02:51,733
Speaker 5: almost behind the keeper a number of times on his back.

46
00:02:51,773 --> 00:02:55,613
Speaker 5: He finished, didn't he? In the innings he really? I

47
00:02:55,613 --> 00:02:57,333
Speaker 5: mean there was a little bit of luck here and there,

48
00:02:57,373 --> 00:02:59,133
Speaker 5: but he you know, there was a runout I think

49
00:02:59,173 --> 00:03:02,213
Speaker 5: to Judasia but maybe feeling it, and he had three

50
00:03:02,253 --> 00:03:05,253
Speaker 5: stunts to aim at that short third and he might

51
00:03:05,293 --> 00:03:08,053
Speaker 5: have been dropped once. But look, I just thought he'd

52
00:03:08,053 --> 00:03:11,133
Speaker 5: played so aggressively that the bowler is in the end.

53
00:03:11,173 --> 00:03:14,133
Speaker 5: You say that the spinners through the middle, which is

54
00:03:14,173 --> 00:03:18,333
Speaker 5: where New Zealand did so well with Lenox and Bracewell,

55
00:03:19,293 --> 00:03:23,813
Speaker 5: they couldn't replicate that at all, and so Mitchell just

56
00:03:24,453 --> 00:03:27,293
Speaker 5: dominated that part and it certainly helped Young. I thought

57
00:03:28,453 --> 00:03:33,493
Speaker 5: just the manner in which that he played aggressively took

58
00:03:33,533 --> 00:03:37,773
Speaker 5: some of the pressure from Young, who has obviously had

59
00:03:37,813 --> 00:03:41,493
Speaker 5: a you know, he hasn't really been overcome with runs

60
00:03:41,573 --> 00:03:44,733
Speaker 5: this season so far. So it was really good for

61
00:03:44,813 --> 00:03:47,773
Speaker 5: him to get an eighty odd, I thought in this

62
00:03:47,893 --> 00:03:50,173
Speaker 5: match as well, so he'll get a heck of a

63
00:03:50,173 --> 00:03:53,973
Speaker 5: lot of confidence from that. Philip flopped in decent form

64
00:03:54,013 --> 00:03:59,093
Speaker 5: as well, Conway's still basically playing through the offside nicely

65
00:03:59,133 --> 00:04:02,693
Speaker 5: but still with the one hand. Yeah, I just thought

66
00:04:02,733 --> 00:04:05,733
Speaker 5: New Zealand. I thought, actually they were going to struggle.

67
00:04:05,973 --> 00:04:10,413
Speaker 5: I've got to say, once the Indian closed down by

68
00:04:10,453 --> 00:04:12,933
Speaker 5: the New Zealand spinners through the middle of the innings,

69
00:04:13,373 --> 00:04:16,813
Speaker 5: I thought that could easily happen. So I headed to bed,

70
00:04:17,093 --> 00:04:20,933
Speaker 5: not bearing to take the disappointment so early in the morning,

71
00:04:21,453 --> 00:04:23,773
Speaker 5: delighted to see that seven wicket whin.

72
00:04:24,453 --> 00:04:27,773
Speaker 2: Yeah, indeed, Mitchell's eighth ady I one hundred and I

73
00:04:27,853 --> 00:04:30,133
Speaker 2: came together the pair here and Will Young at forty

74
00:04:30,133 --> 00:04:32,893
Speaker 2: six for two of the thirteenth over and bearing out

75
00:04:32,933 --> 00:04:36,253
Speaker 2: what you say. It wasn't looking promising at that stage,

76
00:04:36,293 --> 00:04:39,813
Speaker 2: but their match winning partnership for the third wicket was

77
00:04:40,293 --> 00:04:40,693
Speaker 2: the key.

78
00:04:41,213 --> 00:04:41,413
Speaker 4: Yeah.

79
00:04:41,453 --> 00:04:44,293
Speaker 6: I love betting with Youngie. We've done it several times

80
00:04:44,333 --> 00:04:47,173
Speaker 6: now and we have some good fun when we're out there.

81
00:04:47,373 --> 00:04:49,573
Speaker 6: But we also we get in the contest and get

82
00:04:49,573 --> 00:04:52,453
Speaker 6: pretty competitive with the opposition. So I thought that the

83
00:04:52,493 --> 00:04:55,773
Speaker 6: way young he played today was brilliant. He soaked up

84
00:04:55,773 --> 00:04:58,093
Speaker 6: the new ball which looked challenging. I mean, India came

85
00:04:58,493 --> 00:05:00,613
Speaker 6: seriously hard up top and bowled some good areas and

86
00:05:00,613 --> 00:05:03,013
Speaker 6: got it moving and he negated that and then he

87
00:05:03,053 --> 00:05:05,493
Speaker 6: was able to find ways to keep rotating and getting

88
00:05:05,493 --> 00:05:08,333
Speaker 6: the odd boundary here and there. So it was seriously

89
00:05:08,373 --> 00:05:10,253
Speaker 6: good fun betting with them, and you're nice to get

90
00:05:10,293 --> 00:05:11,413
Speaker 6: the job done.

91
00:05:11,413 --> 00:05:14,053
Speaker 2: And Mitchell was proud of the way the per negated

92
00:05:14,133 --> 00:05:17,413
Speaker 2: the danger posed by Judasia and colding.

93
00:05:18,533 --> 00:05:21,413
Speaker 6: Look, it's constantly adapting to what the surface is dictating.

94
00:05:21,453 --> 00:05:24,173
Speaker 6: And I guess today the surface was a lot lower

95
00:05:24,853 --> 00:05:27,253
Speaker 6: and slower in that bounce, so it's probably easier to

96
00:05:27,293 --> 00:05:29,213
Speaker 6: go square than it was down the ground at times.

97
00:05:29,253 --> 00:05:32,053
Speaker 6: And I guess the new rule of one Day cricket

98
00:05:32,053 --> 00:05:34,293
Speaker 6: with the ball only becoming one ball after thirty five

99
00:05:34,293 --> 00:05:36,933
Speaker 6: overs means the ball's very soft and it is hard,

100
00:05:36,973 --> 00:05:39,333
Speaker 6: I guess, to force the ball. So it's trying to

101
00:05:39,333 --> 00:05:41,893
Speaker 6: be smart with your boundary options and trying to find

102
00:05:41,933 --> 00:05:44,853
Speaker 6: ways again to put pressure back on them. I thought,

103
00:05:45,093 --> 00:05:47,093
Speaker 6: you know, I'll say it again. I think called eep

104
00:05:47,093 --> 00:05:49,693
Speaker 6: in Judasia are world class bowlers. I think they find

105
00:05:49,693 --> 00:05:51,973
Speaker 6: ways to put pressure on us, and there's some of

106
00:05:51,973 --> 00:05:55,293
Speaker 6: the best spinners going around. So yeah, we were lucky

107
00:05:55,373 --> 00:05:57,533
Speaker 6: enough to build partnerships today and find ways to put

108
00:05:57,573 --> 00:06:00,333
Speaker 6: pressure on them, and I've also seen them tear through

109
00:06:00,373 --> 00:06:01,573
Speaker 6: teams in the past as well.

110
00:06:01,453 --> 00:06:05,733
Speaker 2: So it's so positives there from the batting of Mitchell

111
00:06:06,053 --> 00:06:11,493
Speaker 2: and also of Will Young, and there's been other minor

112
00:06:11,573 --> 00:06:15,773
Speaker 2: cameos from other players. Am I unfair though in saying

113
00:06:15,813 --> 00:06:19,533
Speaker 2: that this side should have had a number of particularly

114
00:06:19,613 --> 00:06:22,213
Speaker 2: the batting players who are going to be part of

115
00:06:22,253 --> 00:06:25,893
Speaker 2: the World Cup, using the conditions that they're going to face,

116
00:06:25,933 --> 00:06:29,253
Speaker 2: because that's way better than playing in New Zealand, or

117
00:06:29,293 --> 00:06:31,453
Speaker 2: way better than playing in Australia, or way better than

118
00:06:31,453 --> 00:06:33,973
Speaker 2: playing somewhere else. I know that they've got to look

119
00:06:34,013 --> 00:06:36,413
Speaker 2: after some of those who are wrapped up in cotton

120
00:06:36,493 --> 00:06:39,533
Speaker 2: will but I just think that those players should have

121
00:06:39,533 --> 00:06:41,573
Speaker 2: been there. It's nice to have Will Young there and

122
00:06:41,613 --> 00:06:44,413
Speaker 2: getting him back into form. His highest score in the

123
00:06:44,453 --> 00:06:47,213
Speaker 2: last two of od eyes has been twenty seven. But

124
00:06:47,613 --> 00:06:51,333
Speaker 2: you know, these guys using those conditions, to my mind,

125
00:06:51,773 --> 00:06:54,253
Speaker 2: is important for the upcoming World T twitty, isn't it?

126
00:06:54,333 --> 00:06:55,373
Speaker 4: Or am I unfair?

127
00:06:55,693 --> 00:06:57,773
Speaker 5: So are you saying you'd like some more of those

128
00:06:57,813 --> 00:07:02,173
Speaker 5: T twenty twenty twenty players who have been selected for

129
00:07:02,333 --> 00:07:05,533
Speaker 5: the World Cup into the SODII side. That's what you're saying,

130
00:07:05,933 --> 00:07:09,053
Speaker 5: that's what I think. Yeah, yeah, well and which ones

131
00:07:09,053 --> 00:07:10,853
Speaker 5: in particular would you have selected?

132
00:07:11,293 --> 00:07:14,333
Speaker 2: Well, for a start off, Fanellen is going across there

133
00:07:14,493 --> 00:07:17,613
Speaker 2: and he would have been there ahead of Nichols. Nichols

134
00:07:17,653 --> 00:07:21,613
Speaker 2: isn't in the T twenty squad. Yeah, you know, there's

135
00:07:22,293 --> 00:07:27,293
Speaker 2: Russian Ravender's got experience over there. But you know, rather

136
00:07:27,373 --> 00:07:30,013
Speaker 2: than playing at the base in reserve, I think, you know,

137
00:07:30,373 --> 00:07:33,373
Speaker 2: he would have been of some value. And there are

138
00:07:33,453 --> 00:07:37,373
Speaker 2: other players too who are part of the batting mix

139
00:07:38,053 --> 00:07:42,133
Speaker 2: that could be valuable just getting some time over there.

140
00:07:43,013 --> 00:07:45,533
Speaker 2: You know. I know it's a long time away. We

141
00:07:45,653 --> 00:07:48,133
Speaker 2: hear that over and over again, but you know, you're

142
00:07:48,213 --> 00:07:50,453
Speaker 2: pro cricketers and you're getting paid pretty bloody well.

143
00:07:51,053 --> 00:07:56,373
Speaker 5: That's true, that's true. Yeah, they could have taken that view.

144
00:07:56,413 --> 00:08:00,733
Speaker 5: It looks to me the makeup of this one day

145
00:08:01,013 --> 00:08:06,533
Speaker 5: side wads. They've they've picked a few developmental little players,

146
00:08:06,573 --> 00:08:10,173
Speaker 5: haven't they really. Clark, for example, who was around in

147
00:08:10,213 --> 00:08:14,893
Speaker 5: the Test series, didn't play against the West Indies and

148
00:08:14,933 --> 00:08:18,733
Speaker 5: they're haven't given him a crack. And Young you've mentioned

149
00:08:19,773 --> 00:08:23,333
Speaker 5: and he's obviously benefited, but he's not there for the

150
00:08:24,253 --> 00:08:29,373
Speaker 5: twenty twenty World Cup. Look, I mean some of the

151
00:08:29,413 --> 00:08:33,453
Speaker 5: players to me look a little tired. In the ODI's folks,

152
00:08:33,493 --> 00:08:37,853
Speaker 5: for example, it hasn't been quite himself. The white ball

153
00:08:37,973 --> 00:08:41,333
Speaker 5: certainly doesn't swing quite as much for him, like I

154
00:08:41,413 --> 00:08:44,733
Speaker 5: mean about three balls and that's about it. And then

155
00:08:44,773 --> 00:08:47,373
Speaker 5: he ends up bowling a little bit wide and gets crunched,

156
00:08:49,133 --> 00:08:52,173
Speaker 5: and so he looks as if he could have done

157
00:08:52,213 --> 00:08:54,813
Speaker 5: with a bit of a break. Actually the bowling is

158
00:08:54,893 --> 00:08:58,973
Speaker 5: slightly suspect. I would have to say for that ODI side,

159
00:09:00,053 --> 00:09:04,093
Speaker 5: they've hung on as well as they can. Jamison did

160
00:09:04,133 --> 00:09:08,093
Speaker 5: a very good job in the first game. He struggled

161
00:09:08,093 --> 00:09:13,253
Speaker 5: a more on this latest match at Rajkot. But I look,

162
00:09:13,293 --> 00:09:16,533
Speaker 5: I I you look, you've got a point. It's it's

163
00:09:16,853 --> 00:09:23,053
Speaker 5: it'll be a balance between developmental stuff and immediate stuff,

164
00:09:23,493 --> 00:09:28,653
Speaker 5: won't it. And that's they've obviously gone the developmental way

165
00:09:28,773 --> 00:09:32,173
Speaker 5: to keep players going, to get players out of form

166
00:09:32,293 --> 00:09:36,893
Speaker 5: back into form, those kinds of things, and to introduce

167
00:09:37,053 --> 00:09:40,853
Speaker 5: new players. So that just seems the way they've chosen.

168
00:09:41,373 --> 00:09:43,253
Speaker 5: I can understand both points of view.

169
00:09:43,653 --> 00:09:45,733
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's fair enough. I mean, it's just something that

170
00:09:46,493 --> 00:09:49,333
Speaker 2: I think that you know, there's also a lot of

171
00:09:49,373 --> 00:09:52,053
Speaker 2: money being spent on getting these people development. But I

172
00:09:52,053 --> 00:09:55,653
Speaker 2: think it's worthwhile to have the likes of folks there Lenox,

173
00:09:55,773 --> 00:09:59,973
Speaker 2: the the left Armor and the Ashot, the League spinner.

174
00:10:00,213 --> 00:10:03,373
Speaker 2: You know, they're getting valuable experience out of it to

175
00:10:03,373 --> 00:10:07,893
Speaker 2: some extent. But there are a way off being frontline picks,

176
00:10:07,893 --> 00:10:10,853
Speaker 2: an't they for our white ball teams? But I suppose

177
00:10:10,893 --> 00:10:14,213
Speaker 2: they've got to take that opportunity and good on, that's

178
00:10:14,253 --> 00:10:16,813
Speaker 2: what they're doing. All we want now is to make

179
00:10:16,813 --> 00:10:20,573
Speaker 2: sure that they win an indoor and a win in

180
00:10:20,653 --> 00:10:25,373
Speaker 2: a series against India. We'll be following that very closely.

181
00:10:25,773 --> 00:10:29,053
Speaker 2: All right, Oh, Jerry, I'm going off a long run up.

182
00:10:29,213 --> 00:10:31,813
Speaker 2: I'm marking out a long runout.

183
00:10:32,133 --> 00:10:34,133
Speaker 5: No, here we go right, come on, then on the

184
00:10:34,213 --> 00:10:38,533
Speaker 5: front foot and here he goes the bouncer right o.

185
00:10:38,893 --> 00:10:43,453
Speaker 2: And the first bouncer goes, well, it's going to who

186
00:10:43,573 --> 00:10:46,773
Speaker 2: but Harry Brook. He doesn't handle bouncers very well.

187
00:10:47,253 --> 00:10:48,493
Speaker 5: Former ring does not.

188
00:10:50,293 --> 00:10:52,573
Speaker 2: Stuart Broad says the current team did not have a

189
00:10:52,653 --> 00:10:57,493
Speaker 2: drinking problem, despite a series of incidents involving alcohol this winter.

190
00:10:57,573 --> 00:11:01,733
Speaker 2: That's the English winter. Brook was fine following an altercation

191
00:11:01,853 --> 00:11:05,093
Speaker 2: with a bouncer in New Zealand, while players were pictured

192
00:11:05,173 --> 00:11:09,133
Speaker 2: drinking across multiple games during a mid ashes break in news.

193
00:11:09,133 --> 00:11:11,653
Speaker 2: And I'm sorry at the moment you start putting up

194
00:11:11,693 --> 00:11:15,693
Speaker 2: excuses about not having a drinking problem, You've got a problem.

195
00:11:15,853 --> 00:11:19,453
Speaker 2: And it's not the drinking. It's the problem. It's the

196
00:11:19,653 --> 00:11:24,493
Speaker 2: inability to show the discipline, the self control, things that

197
00:11:24,493 --> 00:11:26,893
Speaker 2: are needed off the field that are also needed on

198
00:11:26,973 --> 00:11:27,813
Speaker 2: the field, aren't they.

199
00:11:28,613 --> 00:11:32,013
Speaker 5: Yeah, it's it's also the night before a match. It's

200
00:11:32,093 --> 00:11:33,733
Speaker 5: when you drink too, isn't it, Brian?

201
00:11:34,333 --> 00:11:34,533
Speaker 4: Yeah?

202
00:11:35,853 --> 00:11:38,813
Speaker 5: And where do you drink? I mean to me, I

203
00:11:38,813 --> 00:11:41,173
Speaker 5: mean it's a string of stories about the players, as

204
00:11:41,213 --> 00:11:43,613
Speaker 5: you say, about their habits and their culture off the field.

205
00:11:44,053 --> 00:11:50,293
Speaker 5: NUSA bounces this case. This is of course the second

206
00:11:50,373 --> 00:11:55,093
Speaker 5: kind of group that McCullum and Stokes you know, took

207
00:11:55,133 --> 00:11:58,053
Speaker 5: on when they first came in with the with the

208
00:11:58,093 --> 00:12:02,253
Speaker 5: idea of playing aggressively. And it was against New Zealand

209
00:12:02,253 --> 00:12:06,133
Speaker 5: actually over in England. I happened to be there, and

210
00:12:06,173 --> 00:12:09,213
Speaker 5: it was players like Bearsto and Folks and Broad and

211
00:12:09,213 --> 00:12:14,373
Speaker 5: Anderson and Leech, you know, older, more experienced players that

212
00:12:14,413 --> 00:12:20,773
Speaker 5: they played against New Zealand. And it's rather different when

213
00:12:20,773 --> 00:12:24,213
Speaker 5: you're going a tor to Australia and the first Ashes

214
00:12:24,293 --> 00:12:27,813
Speaker 5: tour to Australia and there there were twelve of them,

215
00:12:28,333 --> 00:12:35,133
Speaker 5: Bashier Atkinson, Betel Potts, Brooks, Smith, Cass Jack's Fisher Tongue

216
00:12:35,333 --> 00:12:38,613
Speaker 5: and so on, you know, and even McCullum was his

217
00:12:38,693 --> 00:12:42,973
Speaker 5: first Ashes tour also, wasn't it. So you know, I

218
00:12:43,053 --> 00:12:45,813
Speaker 5: just wonder if the second group is a little bit

219
00:12:45,853 --> 00:12:52,613
Speaker 5: more inexperienced in terms of going going to Australia and

220
00:12:52,733 --> 00:12:56,013
Speaker 5: did they need a slightly different approach. I mean, it's

221
00:12:56,053 --> 00:13:01,813
Speaker 5: an intense tour, lot of scrutiny on and off the field,

222
00:13:02,533 --> 00:13:05,333
Speaker 5: and just players need to have that balance to survive.

223
00:13:06,573 --> 00:13:08,853
Speaker 5: It's not the same as playing at Mount and Nui.

224
00:13:08,933 --> 00:13:13,933
Speaker 5: I've got to tell you. It's you know, it's it's

225
00:13:14,013 --> 00:13:19,533
Speaker 5: indisputable sense when you need to ensure you know, you

226
00:13:19,653 --> 00:13:22,933
Speaker 5: represent yourself and the team in the best possible way

227
00:13:23,653 --> 00:13:26,413
Speaker 5: when you can on the field, and you know you

228
00:13:26,493 --> 00:13:28,453
Speaker 5: got the right to enjoy the two of course you have.

229
00:13:29,053 --> 00:13:33,253
Speaker 5: But Harry Brooke was the captain of that side in

230
00:13:33,373 --> 00:13:36,293
Speaker 5: New Zealand. He was the captain, not just a member

231
00:13:36,333 --> 00:13:40,013
Speaker 5: of the team. You know, he he almost has the

232
00:13:40,093 --> 00:13:43,413
Speaker 5: role to set the rules along with the coach and

233
00:13:43,453 --> 00:13:47,213
Speaker 5: the management. Stokes wasn't there if you remember, you know,

234
00:13:48,133 --> 00:13:52,613
Speaker 5: this was there probably near their last competitive match before

235
00:13:52,613 --> 00:13:55,253
Speaker 5: the build up for the Ashes, and he was there

236
00:13:55,293 --> 00:13:59,413
Speaker 5: representing the England team, the players and the team the ECB.

237
00:14:00,133 --> 00:14:04,813
Speaker 5: All the number fives or four's in England, he represents them.

238
00:14:05,133 --> 00:14:08,973
Speaker 5: And this was an early morning on the day a match.

239
00:14:09,693 --> 00:14:12,893
Speaker 5: I mean, for heaven's sake, he's twenty six and he's

240
00:14:12,893 --> 00:14:16,413
Speaker 5: played enough cricket to know that. You you know, if

241
00:14:16,413 --> 00:14:18,813
Speaker 5: you want a quiet drink, you do it in your

242
00:14:18,893 --> 00:14:22,733
Speaker 5: room or in a teammate's room and then you quietly

243
00:14:22,813 --> 00:14:26,973
Speaker 5: go off to bed. You know what you don't want

244
00:14:27,053 --> 00:14:29,373
Speaker 5: to do. I think sounds like me. I'm on my

245
00:14:29,413 --> 00:14:32,413
Speaker 5: bloody soapbox at the moment. But what you don't want

246
00:14:32,453 --> 00:14:36,133
Speaker 5: to do is create the impression to New Zealanders and

247
00:14:36,253 --> 00:14:40,133
Speaker 5: Australians people back home. This is all a bit of

248
00:14:40,133 --> 00:14:44,853
Speaker 5: a joke, you know, and it's a bit of an exercise.

249
00:14:45,013 --> 00:14:48,013
Speaker 5: You don't give much credence to the cricket results. But

250
00:14:48,133 --> 00:14:50,013
Speaker 5: some of it was there for a good time.

251
00:14:50,493 --> 00:14:52,253
Speaker 2: Some of it was a bit of a joke, wasn't it.

252
00:14:52,293 --> 00:14:54,733
Speaker 2: Because they seemed more interested in playing golf when they

253
00:14:54,733 --> 00:14:57,813
Speaker 2: were here and concentrating on cricket. But they still should

254
00:14:57,853 --> 00:14:59,173
Speaker 2: have been concentrating on cricket.

255
00:14:59,853 --> 00:15:02,493
Speaker 5: Yeah, well you got whether you like it or not.

256
00:15:02,573 --> 00:15:05,333
Speaker 5: Once you picked, you've got a responsibility to all those

257
00:15:05,413 --> 00:15:08,293
Speaker 5: interested parties I just mentioned, like the eacy being all

258
00:15:08,373 --> 00:15:13,573
Speaker 5: those things, and it fell well short of what was required. Really, Yes,

259
00:15:13,613 --> 00:15:16,213
Speaker 5: I mean as a player every tour I went on,

260
00:15:16,493 --> 00:15:18,013
Speaker 5: all I wanted to say at the end of it

261
00:15:18,053 --> 00:15:20,893
Speaker 5: was year I prepared as well as I could, gave

262
00:15:20,933 --> 00:15:24,013
Speaker 5: it my best. You might have been outplayed by a

263
00:15:24,013 --> 00:15:28,053
Speaker 5: bitter side, but really, as far as Harry was concerned,

264
00:15:28,453 --> 00:15:35,453
Speaker 5: untimely hour, wrong place and unbefitting a council encounter when

265
00:15:35,493 --> 00:15:38,093
Speaker 5: you get into a bit of a scrap with the bouncer,

266
00:15:38,733 --> 00:15:43,213
Speaker 5: so it doesn't look good. It was then covered up,

267
00:15:43,333 --> 00:15:46,053
Speaker 5: wasn't it. That's even worse. That's almost as bad.

268
00:15:46,533 --> 00:15:48,893
Speaker 2: And he's not the first player to have been in

269
00:15:48,933 --> 00:15:51,373
Speaker 2: that situation. Others have been that way and other tours

270
00:15:51,373 --> 00:15:54,453
Speaker 2: and they haven't come out of it very well, any

271
00:15:54,493 --> 00:15:58,333
Speaker 2: of those players. If i'd thirty thousand pounds, apparently that's

272
00:15:58,453 --> 00:16:01,373
Speaker 2: quite a hefty fine, but he's probably got enough in

273
00:16:01,413 --> 00:16:05,933
Speaker 2: the bank balance now and is that the real answers?

274
00:16:06,133 --> 00:16:09,013
Speaker 2: One writer fellow by the I think his name is

275
00:16:09,053 --> 00:16:13,333
Speaker 2: Cameron Ponsonby wrote in an article in a review. He said,

276
00:16:13,613 --> 00:16:17,373
Speaker 2: Harry Brook is drowning in the ego and arrogance. The

277
00:16:17,413 --> 00:16:21,173
Speaker 2: only way he will stop believing in his own invincibility

278
00:16:21,653 --> 00:16:24,413
Speaker 2: is by being dropped. And I think he's probably right.

279
00:16:24,693 --> 00:16:27,213
Speaker 5: Yeah. Well, it's certainly one of the options. And they

280
00:16:27,293 --> 00:16:31,973
Speaker 5: might cut him out of some of those positions of responsibility.

281
00:16:32,573 --> 00:16:35,333
Speaker 5: Who knows. Well, that's all part of the wash up,

282
00:16:35,413 --> 00:16:39,493
Speaker 5: isn't it. And we're about to I guess go through

283
00:16:39,533 --> 00:16:43,973
Speaker 5: some of that and let's wait and see what occurs there. Yeah,

284
00:16:44,773 --> 00:16:49,493
Speaker 5: those are options available to people who are in suits

285
00:16:49,693 --> 00:16:50,493
Speaker 5: above him.

286
00:16:51,013 --> 00:16:51,613
Speaker 4: Yes, indeed.

287
00:16:51,693 --> 00:16:54,093
Speaker 2: Oh, here we've got another chance. I'm going back from

288
00:16:54,093 --> 00:16:55,613
Speaker 2: the long run. Another bouncer.

289
00:16:55,813 --> 00:16:58,253
Speaker 5: Here it comes. That's two for the over.

290
00:16:58,853 --> 00:17:02,213
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, well I'm going over the top of senior

291
00:17:02,613 --> 00:17:05,373
Speaker 2: broadcaster has delivered a fierce verdict on the decision to

292
00:17:05,413 --> 00:17:09,093
Speaker 2: stage well what is called the Centenary at the Melbourne

293
00:17:09,093 --> 00:17:12,453
Speaker 2: Cricket Ground as a day night match, calling it a

294
00:17:12,453 --> 00:17:15,613
Speaker 2: betrayal of the game's traditions. Jim Maxwell and our old

295
00:17:15,613 --> 00:17:18,853
Speaker 2: friend from the ABC didn't hold back while reacting to

296
00:17:18,893 --> 00:17:22,333
Speaker 2: the pink ball format being chosen for an event which

297
00:17:22,373 --> 00:17:26,293
Speaker 2: is going to be held in March twenty twenty seven.

298
00:17:26,373 --> 00:17:28,533
Speaker 2: So it's the one hundred and fiftieth actually of the

299
00:17:28,573 --> 00:17:31,573
Speaker 2: First Test, and it's the celebration of a centenary Test

300
00:17:31,933 --> 00:17:36,413
Speaker 2: staged at the mcg Maxwell said playing with a pink

301
00:17:36,453 --> 00:17:40,373
Speaker 2: ball is an insult to the game. It's so disrespectful

302
00:17:40,413 --> 00:17:42,653
Speaker 2: to a game that has been played with a red

303
00:17:42,693 --> 00:17:47,053
Speaker 2: ball for ninety nine point nine percent of its history.

304
00:17:47,653 --> 00:17:50,173
Speaker 2: And you know, I don't always agree with Jim, but

305
00:17:50,533 --> 00:17:52,573
Speaker 2: I agree on that occasion. We might have to get

306
00:17:52,613 --> 00:17:56,933
Speaker 2: him back and talk to him about it.

307
00:17:56,453 --> 00:18:03,093
Speaker 5: Just get him on, just asking one question. Let him go, yeah, yeah,

308
00:18:03,213 --> 00:18:06,853
Speaker 5: it's a Seskui centenary, isn't it. It's the Latin for

309
00:18:06,893 --> 00:18:09,333
Speaker 5: one and a half one and a half centuries.

310
00:18:10,093 --> 00:18:14,693
Speaker 2: Well that's too hard for cricketers to say, yeah, okay, yeah.

311
00:18:14,733 --> 00:18:18,533
Speaker 5: Look it's it's a celebration though, isn't it. It's a

312
00:18:18,573 --> 00:18:22,973
Speaker 5: celebration of the durability of the Test format and the

313
00:18:23,013 --> 00:18:29,293
Speaker 5: past matches, the past players between the two nations, England

314
00:18:29,293 --> 00:18:34,813
Speaker 5: and Australia. It's to me, I don't know this match

315
00:18:34,933 --> 00:18:37,933
Speaker 5: parks back to the very first game, doesn't it eighteen

316
00:18:38,133 --> 00:18:41,053
Speaker 5: seventy seven I think of, which.

317
00:18:40,893 --> 00:18:43,013
Speaker 2: Was celebrated in nineteen seventy seven.

318
00:18:43,533 --> 00:18:48,013
Speaker 5: Yeah, exactly so, so eighteen seventy seven at the MC,

319
00:18:48,133 --> 00:18:51,973
Speaker 5: I just missed that game was But I did, however,

320
00:18:53,533 --> 00:18:57,853
Speaker 5: watch the centenary match. I had a quick look at

321
00:18:57,853 --> 00:19:00,093
Speaker 5: the eighteen seventy seven match. Do you know who won it?

322
00:19:01,213 --> 00:19:04,853
Speaker 2: Aen seventy seven? Yeah, it was the same result.

323
00:19:05,373 --> 00:19:11,373
Speaker 5: Good lad, well done. Yeah runs both games that game

324
00:19:11,533 --> 00:19:15,413
Speaker 5: is eighteen seventy seven and nineteen seventy seven, both winning

325
00:19:15,773 --> 00:19:19,813
Speaker 5: by the same side Australia, yep, and both by forty

326
00:19:19,853 --> 00:19:24,333
Speaker 5: five runs. But so you were at the first time, Yeah, yeah,

327
00:19:24,533 --> 00:19:29,733
Speaker 5: it's it's look, I don't know who suggested the pink ball.

328
00:19:29,973 --> 00:19:35,933
Speaker 5: I the test. I think if it alters the pink

329
00:19:35,973 --> 00:19:39,133
Speaker 5: ball alters the nature of the game, doesn't it. Not

330
00:19:39,253 --> 00:19:42,453
Speaker 5: just the hours, but the nature of the game, and

331
00:19:42,493 --> 00:19:45,973
Speaker 5: that the ball suddenly at certain times of the match

332
00:19:46,373 --> 00:19:51,253
Speaker 5: it becomes very much more difficult to bat. The only

333
00:19:51,293 --> 00:19:53,773
Speaker 5: other the other thing I would say, I wonder whether

334
00:19:53,893 --> 00:19:58,693
Speaker 5: money lies behind the decision. Of course, of course, at

335
00:19:58,693 --> 00:20:02,333
Speaker 5: will there's Moose says follow the money after the loss

336
00:20:02,373 --> 00:20:05,693
Speaker 5: of funds from a two day test. They are quite

337
00:20:05,733 --> 00:20:09,133
Speaker 5: recently at the MCG. I do know it's about match,

338
00:20:09,133 --> 00:20:12,493
Speaker 5: about lineage, and if you're going to retain the year,

339
00:20:13,133 --> 00:20:18,053
Speaker 5: which they are seventy seven and now the Sesqui centenary

340
00:20:18,093 --> 00:20:21,893
Speaker 5: fifty years after that, and then you know you're going

341
00:20:21,933 --> 00:20:25,053
Speaker 5: to retain the March date which is exactly the same

342
00:20:25,733 --> 00:20:29,613
Speaker 5: as the eighteen seventy seven match. Why change the time

343
00:20:29,653 --> 00:20:34,773
Speaker 5: that you play dramatically exactly doesn't make sense to me

344
00:20:35,053 --> 00:20:39,053
Speaker 5: at all. So stick with the game's laws. That's l

345
00:20:39,133 --> 00:20:43,573
Speaker 5: ories and cherish its soul. I mean you and I

346
00:20:43,613 --> 00:20:46,093
Speaker 5: tend to be of the ilk of Jim Maxwell, I

347
00:20:46,133 --> 00:20:47,893
Speaker 5: have to say. And that's what a lot of people

348
00:20:48,173 --> 00:20:51,893
Speaker 5: will lump us all together as oldies. We don't care.

349
00:20:52,893 --> 00:20:55,373
Speaker 5: Those guys who are thinking that will be old themselves

350
00:20:55,373 --> 00:20:58,853
Speaker 5: one day and maybe they'll feel similarly.

351
00:20:59,293 --> 00:21:02,213
Speaker 2: So I AGA has survived.

352
00:21:03,093 --> 00:21:05,253
Speaker 5: If it has, that's right. I'll tell you what what

353
00:21:05,293 --> 00:21:07,733
Speaker 5: do you remember about that seventy seven match? Can you

354
00:21:07,733 --> 00:21:08,573
Speaker 5: remember things?

355
00:21:09,293 --> 00:21:15,933
Speaker 2: I remember Dave Hooks getting five pours, boundaries, yeah.

356
00:21:15,493 --> 00:21:17,573
Speaker 5: Off who off.

357
00:21:19,053 --> 00:21:21,093
Speaker 4: Tall? Yeah, spinball on it?

358
00:21:21,933 --> 00:21:25,813
Speaker 5: Yeah, well he's spin and scene correct.

359
00:21:26,093 --> 00:21:26,333
Speaker 2: Yeah.

360
00:21:26,613 --> 00:21:28,373
Speaker 5: But what was that? What was that? What was the

361
00:21:28,373 --> 00:21:31,053
Speaker 5: photo that's always seen?

362
00:21:31,893 --> 00:21:33,853
Speaker 2: Oh well, I've got so many photos of it.

363
00:21:33,973 --> 00:21:35,093
Speaker 4: I don't know what.

364
00:21:35,453 --> 00:21:40,613
Speaker 5: But this guy, it's a it's an photo. Well that's

365
00:21:40,973 --> 00:21:44,413
Speaker 5: Derrick Randalls certainly going He in the in the second innings,

366
00:21:44,413 --> 00:21:48,213
Speaker 5: he got one hundred and seventy odd, didn't he And

367
00:21:48,253 --> 00:21:51,093
Speaker 5: he got hit by Lily actually in the head and

368
00:21:51,173 --> 00:21:53,933
Speaker 5: just picked himself up and carried on. So I don't

369
00:21:53,933 --> 00:21:56,773
Speaker 5: know whether there's too much thought going on there or not,

370
00:21:56,973 --> 00:22:01,173
Speaker 5: but I mean there's certainly that was the way the

371
00:22:01,213 --> 00:22:05,333
Speaker 5: game was played. I'm thinking of Rick mcboska, the opener

372
00:22:05,693 --> 00:22:12,093
Speaker 5: for Australia. Yet the first morning when Australia batted, Bob

373
00:22:12,133 --> 00:22:15,093
Speaker 5: Willis came into Bold, Bold him a bouncer. He went

374
00:22:15,133 --> 00:22:19,013
Speaker 5: to hook, it was hitting the jaw. It rolled onto

375
00:22:19,053 --> 00:22:21,253
Speaker 5: his stumps after hitting him on the jaw, and he

376
00:22:21,333 --> 00:22:26,773
Speaker 5: was out Bold. He walked off, no stretcher, walked off,

377
00:22:27,533 --> 00:22:30,613
Speaker 5: spent one and a half days in hospital having his

378
00:22:30,733 --> 00:22:35,213
Speaker 5: jaw wired, and then came back to the ground and

379
00:22:35,373 --> 00:22:38,813
Speaker 5: Greg Chapel, the Australian captain, asked him if he could bat,

380
00:22:39,373 --> 00:22:42,973
Speaker 5: and he said he made the decision he would definitely bat.

381
00:22:43,293 --> 00:22:47,653
Speaker 5: He would definitely bat. And he batted number ten in

382
00:22:47,733 --> 00:22:52,093
Speaker 5: the second innings, first ball, and he went out with

383
00:22:52,693 --> 00:22:56,773
Speaker 5: bandages wrapped right around under his chin and over his

384
00:22:56,933 --> 00:23:00,933
Speaker 5: head at the top to hold it all together, right, yeah,

385
00:23:00,973 --> 00:23:04,213
Speaker 5: And he wore the baggy green on top. And the

386
00:23:04,253 --> 00:23:06,613
Speaker 5: first ball he got from John Lever was a bouncer

387
00:23:06,973 --> 00:23:11,173
Speaker 5: and he hooked it for four and the crowd saying

388
00:23:12,013 --> 00:23:15,693
Speaker 5: wal sing the cos woal sing the cost.

389
00:23:17,933 --> 00:23:20,733
Speaker 2: That's a good idea. Now memory is coming back. So yeah,

390
00:23:21,133 --> 00:23:23,813
Speaker 2: So you did see both the Initial Test and the

391
00:23:23,893 --> 00:23:27,293
Speaker 2: Centenary Test, and I'm sure you'll be there in March

392
00:23:27,693 --> 00:23:30,853
Speaker 2: of next year to watch the pinkball Test.

393
00:23:33,013 --> 00:23:35,333
Speaker 5: I won't be going to watch a pinkball test what's

394
00:23:35,373 --> 00:23:36,973
Speaker 5: over there? I can tell you.

395
00:23:37,213 --> 00:23:39,413
Speaker 4: The poems won't.

396
00:23:39,573 --> 00:23:44,613
Speaker 2: But played that but an interesting situation that one, of course.

397
00:23:44,613 --> 00:23:47,773
Speaker 2: And uh you know I've just been yellow carded for

398
00:23:48,053 --> 00:23:49,933
Speaker 2: two bounces in the one over.

399
00:23:49,813 --> 00:23:52,813
Speaker 5: Ye long runner.

400
00:23:53,493 --> 00:23:57,213
Speaker 1: Brian Waddell, Jeremy Coney on the front foot.

401
00:23:57,493 --> 00:24:00,053
Speaker 2: We're on the pitchures and I know you like talking

402
00:24:00,093 --> 00:24:03,973
Speaker 2: about pitchers and pitch preparation. Well, pitchers and their preparation

403
00:24:04,853 --> 00:24:07,133
Speaker 2: have been at the forefront of mine. Since that Boxing

404
00:24:07,213 --> 00:24:10,373
Speaker 2: Day test. The mc gee pits for that test entered

405
00:24:10,373 --> 00:24:14,973
Speaker 2: inside two days and earned an unsatisfactory rating from the

406
00:24:15,213 --> 00:24:17,773
Speaker 2: ICC match referee for the game, Jeff Crow. I'd love

407
00:24:17,773 --> 00:24:20,213
Speaker 2: to have a chat with Chopper about that as a result.

408
00:24:21,573 --> 00:24:24,493
Speaker 5: How many What I would like to know is how

409
00:24:24,533 --> 00:24:27,453
Speaker 5: many demerit points would you have given it?

410
00:24:28,493 --> 00:24:32,853
Speaker 2: I'd have given it six bandit. I only got one

411
00:24:32,893 --> 00:24:37,013
Speaker 2: demerit point, hardly a severe punishment, but I'm sure it

412
00:24:37,053 --> 00:24:39,293
Speaker 2: will have entered the pride of the curator who got

413
00:24:39,373 --> 00:24:43,013
Speaker 2: more than a reasonable amount of flak. What makes a

414
00:24:43,053 --> 00:24:45,893
Speaker 2: good test trip? New Zealand Test grounds have a good

415
00:24:45,933 --> 00:24:48,493
Speaker 2: record in recent times and one man who knows more

416
00:24:48,533 --> 00:24:50,933
Speaker 2: than most what it takes to prepare a goods trip

417
00:24:50,973 --> 00:24:55,213
Speaker 2: as the basin reserve groundsman or curator or custodian and

418
00:24:55,253 --> 00:24:58,533
Speaker 2: whatever he is, Hagen faith W joins us on the

419
00:24:58,693 --> 00:25:02,653
Speaker 2: front foot and Hagen, what do we officially call you?

420
00:25:02,813 --> 00:25:05,813
Speaker 7: I'm just a local grass grub who loves what I

421
00:25:05,853 --> 00:25:11,093
Speaker 7: do and yeah, it's exciting to be able to prepare what.

422
00:25:11,093 --> 00:25:12,933
Speaker 4: That's here at the basin. Yeah.

423
00:25:13,293 --> 00:25:15,173
Speaker 2: Well, I mean I think we've got to be proud

424
00:25:15,213 --> 00:25:16,893
Speaker 2: of our ground staff right up around the country that

425
00:25:17,013 --> 00:25:21,093
Speaker 2: do the test match strips and I think generally we

426
00:25:21,173 --> 00:25:24,573
Speaker 2: prepare quality pictures. You might have the odd one that

427
00:25:24,653 --> 00:25:28,453
Speaker 2: doesn't fit the norm, but generally when you look at

428
00:25:28,533 --> 00:25:31,613
Speaker 2: around the country, the pictures that we prepare are of

429
00:25:31,893 --> 00:25:32,773
Speaker 2: the highest quality.

430
00:25:33,813 --> 00:25:36,773
Speaker 7: We've got a group of guys across the country that

431
00:25:38,213 --> 00:25:43,133
Speaker 7: are world class and credit to them, they work long hours,

432
00:25:43,533 --> 00:25:47,573
Speaker 7: they're very committed and it's all it's all for the

433
00:25:49,373 --> 00:25:54,293
Speaker 7: how they see their love of their game. It's not

434
00:25:54,333 --> 00:25:58,893
Speaker 7: just cricket as well, it's across all turf related activities

435
00:25:58,933 --> 00:26:01,253
Speaker 7: as well. We've got a great group of people across

436
00:26:01,293 --> 00:26:04,373
Speaker 7: the country that really are committed to what well committed

437
00:26:04,413 --> 00:26:04,973
Speaker 7: to their crafts.

438
00:26:05,053 --> 00:26:08,493
Speaker 2: So do you have to reach a New Zealand cret

439
00:26:08,493 --> 00:26:10,493
Speaker 2: standard or do you shut your own standard in terms

440
00:26:10,573 --> 00:26:12,893
Speaker 2: of your own pride and what you turn out here.

441
00:26:13,133 --> 00:26:15,973
Speaker 4: I look, there are some KPIs that we need to follow.

442
00:26:16,893 --> 00:26:20,213
Speaker 7: Look, as long as we're making sure we're hitting those

443
00:26:20,333 --> 00:26:23,173
Speaker 7: basic KPIs, then we're pretty close to where we need

444
00:26:23,213 --> 00:26:27,253
Speaker 7: to be. I guess one thing that we've learned across

445
00:26:27,373 --> 00:26:32,973
Speaker 7: our own venues across country is the different characteristics that

446
00:26:34,493 --> 00:26:38,453
Speaker 7: idiot secrecy is that you'll find that each venue has

447
00:26:39,773 --> 00:26:41,773
Speaker 7: So what's happening at the bat the.

448
00:26:43,453 --> 00:26:46,333
Speaker 4: Mount Munganui is very different to what's happening here at

449
00:26:46,333 --> 00:26:47,093
Speaker 4: the Basement and.

450
00:26:47,053 --> 00:26:50,733
Speaker 7: Wellington, and to be fair that that changes our recipe

451
00:26:52,213 --> 00:26:54,853
Speaker 7: to what we're doing here as to what others will

452
00:26:54,853 --> 00:26:56,053
Speaker 7: be doing everywhere else.

453
00:26:56,533 --> 00:27:02,213
Speaker 2: So that's whether ground components, soil, grass, the whole work correct.

454
00:27:02,253 --> 00:27:06,213
Speaker 7: Absolutely, absolutely, so you might find different grass types here

455
00:27:06,213 --> 00:27:11,453
Speaker 7: in Wellington, different grasses will appreciate our climate better compared

456
00:27:11,493 --> 00:27:14,413
Speaker 7: to somewhere up north or somewhere down south where it

457
00:27:14,453 --> 00:27:15,493
Speaker 7: might be hotter or colder.

458
00:27:15,733 --> 00:27:16,013
Speaker 4: Yeah.

459
00:27:16,133 --> 00:27:18,133
Speaker 2: Absolutely, you feel a bit shorry for the guy at

460
00:27:18,213 --> 00:27:20,693
Speaker 2: the MGG because the players tended to blame the pitch

461
00:27:20,773 --> 00:27:23,253
Speaker 2: more so it might well have been assistance for the

462
00:27:23,253 --> 00:27:25,893
Speaker 2: bowler is more than should have been the cage. But yeah,

463
00:27:25,973 --> 00:27:28,133
Speaker 2: players are going to take responsibility for how they play too,

464
00:27:28,133 --> 00:27:28,533
Speaker 2: don't they.

465
00:27:29,173 --> 00:27:29,773
Speaker 4: Absolutely.

466
00:27:30,253 --> 00:27:34,973
Speaker 7: The picture is the first thing everybody sees, and it's

467
00:27:35,013 --> 00:27:37,453
Speaker 7: taken me a long time myself to work out that

468
00:27:37,733 --> 00:27:39,653
Speaker 7: a lot of the comments and that it's just fish

469
00:27:39,653 --> 00:27:42,893
Speaker 7: and chip paper at the end of the day. A

470
00:27:42,933 --> 00:27:45,293
Speaker 7: lot of people have told me that and it's starting

471
00:27:45,333 --> 00:27:47,373
Speaker 7: to sink in. It's taken a few years, but starting

472
00:27:47,373 --> 00:27:51,013
Speaker 7: to sing I believe it or not, guys, but it's

473
00:27:51,053 --> 00:27:55,253
Speaker 7: a tough one when you're in the moment there.

474
00:27:56,053 --> 00:27:56,653
Speaker 4: What I've.

475
00:27:57,973 --> 00:27:59,813
Speaker 7: What I've done is I've spoken to a few people

476
00:27:59,933 --> 00:28:04,293
Speaker 7: just for tips and for myself. Stay away from reading media,

477
00:28:04,333 --> 00:28:09,653
Speaker 7: stay away from reading social media. There are more turf

478
00:28:09,733 --> 00:28:13,013
Speaker 7: curators in the world. Half an hour before a cricket match,

479
00:28:14,293 --> 00:28:18,293
Speaker 7: that ye fair play. It's part of the theatrix of

480
00:28:18,333 --> 00:28:22,213
Speaker 7: the game and how everybody's excited for the match and

481
00:28:22,293 --> 00:28:26,453
Speaker 7: all the speculations. So we as curators know what we've done,

482
00:28:26,613 --> 00:28:28,613
Speaker 7: We know what we're doing, what we're trying to achieve.

483
00:28:29,853 --> 00:28:30,093
Speaker 3: Yep.

484
00:28:30,093 --> 00:28:33,573
Speaker 4: We might not get it right here and there. You've

485
00:28:33,573 --> 00:28:34,733
Speaker 4: got to ride those waves.

486
00:28:34,853 --> 00:28:38,773
Speaker 7: Everyone has a bad day, but it's a support that's

487
00:28:38,773 --> 00:28:39,493
Speaker 7: around as well.

488
00:28:39,573 --> 00:28:42,013
Speaker 2: What's the key ingredient to a good Test pitch? For you?

489
00:28:42,733 --> 00:28:47,973
Speaker 7: A good Test wicket A good very good curator in

490
00:28:48,013 --> 00:28:52,293
Speaker 7: the past once said to me, preparing a wicket is

491
00:28:52,333 --> 00:28:58,173
Speaker 7: like making a cake. There's free key ingredients. One is

492
00:28:58,213 --> 00:29:02,013
Speaker 7: your grass cover, one as your compaction, and the other

493
00:29:02,413 --> 00:29:06,133
Speaker 7: is the moisture content that you have to depth in

494
00:29:06,173 --> 00:29:09,493
Speaker 7: your profile as well. So if I can get those things,

495
00:29:09,653 --> 00:29:14,093
Speaker 7: those three things right, then I'm in the ballpark and

496
00:29:14,653 --> 00:29:15,773
Speaker 7: pretty much where i need to be.

497
00:29:16,293 --> 00:29:19,333
Speaker 2: One of the issues that was raised in the MCG

498
00:29:19,413 --> 00:29:23,333
Speaker 2: issue that the test lasted two days was grasscover. Grass

499
00:29:23,333 --> 00:29:28,213
Speaker 2: growth a feature of pictures at the basin. There's generally

500
00:29:28,213 --> 00:29:31,813
Speaker 2: good grass cover ten millimeters was what they were talking

501
00:29:31,853 --> 00:29:34,973
Speaker 2: about in terms of grass cup. What do you cut

502
00:29:35,013 --> 00:29:36,453
Speaker 2: your pictures to.

503
00:29:38,133 --> 00:29:38,373
Speaker 3: Look.

504
00:29:39,093 --> 00:29:42,493
Speaker 4: I've been here a little while now and my former.

505
00:29:43,893 --> 00:29:47,453
Speaker 7: Turf manager here that I was under, he was preparing

506
00:29:47,453 --> 00:29:51,933
Speaker 7: wickets with thirty meal grass cover, and we've prepared wickets

507
00:29:51,933 --> 00:29:54,213
Speaker 7: out here that are six to eight mile grass cover.

508
00:29:54,373 --> 00:29:59,293
Speaker 7: So as long as we're getting the density of that

509
00:29:59,773 --> 00:30:03,373
Speaker 7: sword right, not having too much grass as far as

510
00:30:03,493 --> 00:30:07,333
Speaker 7: ftchiness I'm having like a cardboard layer there, we're managing that,

511
00:30:07,533 --> 00:30:09,813
Speaker 7: then there's no reason.

512
00:30:09,973 --> 00:30:12,533
Speaker 4: Well for us, there's.

513
00:30:12,333 --> 00:30:17,213
Speaker 7: No limit to what we're managing here. It just comes

514
00:30:17,213 --> 00:30:19,133
Speaker 7: down to how we're conditioning that grass.

515
00:30:19,773 --> 00:30:21,093
Speaker 4: Why do we put so.

516
00:30:21,133 --> 00:30:23,773
Speaker 7: Much grass on For us here at the basin, It's

517
00:30:23,813 --> 00:30:26,613
Speaker 7: simply to make sure that we're locking in that moisture

518
00:30:28,093 --> 00:30:30,973
Speaker 7: into that surface so that we will get what I

519
00:30:31,013 --> 00:30:34,093
Speaker 7: want is for great days of good pace and balance,

520
00:30:34,573 --> 00:30:38,693
Speaker 7: which will provide a good competition between bat and ball teams.

521
00:30:38,773 --> 00:30:41,093
Speaker 2: Come here and look at the ground and say, chee

522
00:30:41,133 --> 00:30:42,973
Speaker 2: the grass cover. Oh it's green out there. Do you

523
00:30:42,973 --> 00:30:45,013
Speaker 2: think they get seduced a little bit by the color

524
00:30:45,053 --> 00:30:46,093
Speaker 2: of it and the fact that there's a lot of

525
00:30:46,133 --> 00:30:50,533
Speaker 2: grass and don't really understand what is going on underneath.

526
00:30:51,133 --> 00:30:53,613
Speaker 4: Yes, it's interesting.

527
00:30:53,653 --> 00:30:56,213
Speaker 7: It's great to see some of the facial reactions and

528
00:30:56,253 --> 00:30:59,573
Speaker 7: that come through. So I had a great one with

529
00:30:59,893 --> 00:31:02,613
Speaker 7: Mono Morcle and the South African team that turned up

530
00:31:03,293 --> 00:31:05,533
Speaker 7: and where the wick had been under color for a

531
00:31:05,573 --> 00:31:10,133
Speaker 7: couple of days, we pulled the covers back there standing

532
00:31:10,133 --> 00:31:12,613
Speaker 7: there watching us do it, and they just started laughing

533
00:31:12,733 --> 00:31:16,293
Speaker 7: and thinking, oh geez, what what are we up for here?

534
00:31:17,173 --> 00:31:19,213
Speaker 7: And as we were rolling in that like the wicket

535
00:31:19,253 --> 00:31:21,413
Speaker 7: was changing as as the roller was on it and

536
00:31:21,493 --> 00:31:25,413
Speaker 7: the sun was making the wicket I think morning at

537
00:31:25,413 --> 00:31:27,733
Speaker 7: the time. He was having a good conversation with me

538
00:31:27,773 --> 00:31:29,333
Speaker 7: while I was on the roller and he said, look,

539
00:31:29,333 --> 00:31:32,413
Speaker 7: if this was in Cape down the I know that

540
00:31:33,253 --> 00:31:36,853
Speaker 7: we're probably here for a day, but looking at what

541
00:31:37,013 --> 00:31:39,333
Speaker 7: I can see what you're doing here, now, I've got

542
00:31:39,333 --> 00:31:41,133
Speaker 7: that confidence that we're going to have a great match

543
00:31:41,173 --> 00:31:45,493
Speaker 7: here for us. So there is a lot of theatrics

544
00:31:45,493 --> 00:31:50,493
Speaker 7: going with that that that green tinge. I've sort of

545
00:31:50,493 --> 00:31:52,453
Speaker 7: held the view for a few years now that green

546
00:31:52,533 --> 00:31:56,293
Speaker 7: is the new brown. What we what I'm trying to

547
00:31:56,333 --> 00:31:59,493
Speaker 7: achieve with having that color in there is having that

548
00:31:59,533 --> 00:32:04,493
Speaker 7: grass desiccating at that point where we want the pitch

549
00:32:04,613 --> 00:32:07,653
Speaker 7: to be at its peak performance. When I'm saying desicating,

550
00:32:07,693 --> 00:32:09,693
Speaker 7: that's when the live is going, when the juices are

551
00:32:09,773 --> 00:32:13,533
Speaker 7: leaving the plant. That's when the ball was actually hitting

552
00:32:13,533 --> 00:32:16,413
Speaker 7: that grass color on a hard surface. But it's also

553
00:32:17,333 --> 00:32:19,613
Speaker 7: at the point where the surface is at its slickest

554
00:32:19,653 --> 00:32:22,973
Speaker 7: and the ball is kissing through really nicely and coming

555
00:32:23,013 --> 00:32:23,533
Speaker 7: onto the back.

556
00:32:24,573 --> 00:32:26,453
Speaker 2: I can mention the messis with because I probably see

557
00:32:26,453 --> 00:32:29,093
Speaker 2: it more than any other pitch in New Zealand, and

558
00:32:29,133 --> 00:32:34,333
Speaker 2: you will probably have research and status that either prove

559
00:32:34,413 --> 00:32:37,973
Speaker 2: what I say or disagree with it. But I sense

560
00:32:38,253 --> 00:32:42,333
Speaker 2: in the last three or four years there's been more

561
00:32:42,373 --> 00:32:44,893
Speaker 2: bounce in the patient reserve than previously.

562
00:32:45,213 --> 00:32:50,413
Speaker 7: Absolutely we've been we have been increasing and it's pretty

563
00:32:50,493 --> 00:32:55,533
Speaker 7: encouraging that we are able to achieve that we haven't

564
00:32:55,533 --> 00:32:58,293
Speaker 7: really changed things up too much to what we have

565
00:32:58,413 --> 00:33:01,613
Speaker 7: been doing over the last ten years. It's really just

566
00:33:01,653 --> 00:33:06,493
Speaker 7: making sure we get that water that moistured down to

567
00:33:06,613 --> 00:33:08,533
Speaker 7: depth and we're getting and we're rolling at the.

568
00:33:08,573 --> 00:33:09,453
Speaker 4: Right times as well.

569
00:33:10,733 --> 00:33:14,253
Speaker 7: We fell into a trap, I feel like a few

570
00:33:14,333 --> 00:33:16,973
Speaker 7: years ago where we were rolling at the wrong time,

571
00:33:17,013 --> 00:33:20,333
Speaker 7: where it was too where it was too dry. It's

572
00:33:20,413 --> 00:33:23,053
Speaker 7: trying to find those those right times and.

573
00:33:23,133 --> 00:33:24,333
Speaker 4: It's all about timing for us.

574
00:33:24,453 --> 00:33:26,813
Speaker 7: Is that a gut feel. There's a lot of gut feel.

575
00:33:26,893 --> 00:33:29,893
Speaker 7: It's feel as well, we we do believe it or not.

576
00:33:30,093 --> 00:33:33,933
Speaker 7: We we cook soil samples to see how much moisture

577
00:33:34,013 --> 00:33:36,613
Speaker 7: is in the in a little sample, which gives us

578
00:33:36,653 --> 00:33:39,173
Speaker 7: a guide. It's only for one specific spot in the wicket,

579
00:33:39,573 --> 00:33:42,853
Speaker 7: but we and that's in our core test. We measure

580
00:33:42,893 --> 00:33:45,853
Speaker 7: how how the bulk density, which is how hard the

581
00:33:45,853 --> 00:33:49,693
Speaker 7: wicket is, and poor saturations as well. So the poor

582
00:33:49,733 --> 00:33:56,613
Speaker 7: saturations will tell us where, yeah, how wet or how

583
00:33:56,693 --> 00:34:00,413
Speaker 7: much moisture is within those those those cracks, those berievable

584
00:34:00,453 --> 00:34:05,533
Speaker 7: areas which hold nutrient lines of oxygen and areas for

585
00:34:06,293 --> 00:34:07,453
Speaker 7: plant growth to go into.

586
00:34:08,053 --> 00:34:09,133
Speaker 4: So that that gives us.

587
00:34:09,093 --> 00:34:11,453
Speaker 7: An indication to what we should be doing and what

588
00:34:11,453 --> 00:34:13,973
Speaker 7: we shouldn't be doing. For the timing of our key

589
00:34:14,013 --> 00:34:14,733
Speaker 7: pieces are rolling.

590
00:34:14,973 --> 00:34:17,613
Speaker 2: It's a bit of sillance, but it's not an Execcellan No,

591
00:34:18,213 --> 00:34:21,653
Speaker 2: I wouldn't say it's like a high profile science, but.

592
00:34:22,013 --> 00:34:25,733
Speaker 4: Look, it's it's a guide for what we what we're

593
00:34:25,773 --> 00:34:26,573
Speaker 4: trying to achieve.

594
00:34:28,213 --> 00:34:32,973
Speaker 7: Look, preparing a wicket when we when the media turn

595
00:34:33,093 --> 00:34:37,253
Speaker 7: up to a Test manage menu two days out, a

596
00:34:37,253 --> 00:34:39,653
Speaker 7: lot of our wickets are bright green and that, and

597
00:34:39,693 --> 00:34:41,853
Speaker 7: Iran's going, oh my god, what's going on here? And

598
00:34:41,893 --> 00:34:43,613
Speaker 7: then they get to the game day and it's it's

599
00:34:43,613 --> 00:34:45,453
Speaker 7: a lot browner than they were anticipating.

600
00:34:45,453 --> 00:34:45,733
Speaker 4: In that.

601
00:34:47,573 --> 00:34:50,133
Speaker 7: What we're trying to do is we're trying to prepare

602
00:34:50,173 --> 00:34:52,133
Speaker 7: our wickets a little bit like the start of an

603
00:34:52,133 --> 00:34:55,853
Speaker 7: America's Cup race. We got the boats out there in

604
00:34:55,893 --> 00:34:58,813
Speaker 7: the box and they've got two minutes before they before

605
00:34:58,813 --> 00:35:00,533
Speaker 7: they've got the start, and they can't cross the line

606
00:35:00,613 --> 00:35:03,653
Speaker 7: until till that that time's up. We're trying to time

607
00:35:03,733 --> 00:35:05,933
Speaker 7: the preparation of our wicket up to that first ball.

608
00:35:07,893 --> 00:35:12,653
Speaker 7: There are probably two times in I guess my preparation

609
00:35:13,213 --> 00:35:15,573
Speaker 7: where I'll get really nervous or I'll be really relying

610
00:35:15,573 --> 00:35:16,173
Speaker 7: on gut feel.

611
00:35:16,253 --> 00:35:17,893
Speaker 4: I'll be talking to everybody trying to.

612
00:35:17,853 --> 00:35:20,973
Speaker 7: Just calm nerves where Well, the first one is when

613
00:35:21,013 --> 00:35:24,573
Speaker 7: I stop watering the wicket, I'll be looking at forecasts.

614
00:35:24,573 --> 00:35:27,253
Speaker 7: I'll be effectively trying to play God a little bit

615
00:35:27,293 --> 00:35:29,453
Speaker 7: as far as, okay, where do I want this pitch

616
00:35:29,533 --> 00:35:31,973
Speaker 7: to be. That's a very big one. If I get

617
00:35:31,973 --> 00:35:35,693
Speaker 7: that wrong. If I go too much, the wicket could

618
00:35:35,693 --> 00:35:39,253
Speaker 7: be soft and we could have problems. If I stop

619
00:35:39,293 --> 00:35:42,533
Speaker 7: watering too soon, then it turns into probably a docil

620
00:35:42,693 --> 00:35:46,733
Speaker 7: that wicket that we're trying to avoid. And then the

621
00:35:47,053 --> 00:35:49,333
Speaker 7: second time is when I hand the wicket over to

622
00:35:49,373 --> 00:35:51,773
Speaker 7: the umpires, so I can do whatever I want to

623
00:35:51,773 --> 00:35:54,333
Speaker 7: this wicket up until half an hour prior to the

624
00:35:54,373 --> 00:35:55,653
Speaker 7: game when they do the toss.

625
00:35:56,293 --> 00:35:58,093
Speaker 4: At that point there.

626
00:35:57,733 --> 00:36:01,173
Speaker 7: I, me and my team we've fallen under the rule

627
00:36:01,213 --> 00:36:05,093
Speaker 7: of the umpires match officials and we're directed as to

628
00:36:05,893 --> 00:36:07,933
Speaker 7: what they want and what the teams request as far

629
00:36:07,973 --> 00:36:12,853
Speaker 7: as role and that during the game. So it's that

630
00:36:13,013 --> 00:36:16,493
Speaker 7: half an hour prior and that point where I'm deciding

631
00:36:16,493 --> 00:36:20,213
Speaker 7: when I need to stop wading. There are the times

632
00:36:20,253 --> 00:36:24,773
Speaker 7: there where I am sort of either questioning myself a lot,

633
00:36:24,813 --> 00:36:27,293
Speaker 7: should have done this, shouldn't have done that? Am I

634
00:36:27,373 --> 00:36:30,693
Speaker 7: really happy? Am I not happy? And you sort of

635
00:36:30,853 --> 00:36:34,973
Speaker 7: you're riding the Yeah, you're riding the wave a little bit.

636
00:36:36,133 --> 00:36:39,693
Speaker 2: Yeah, I suppose now and again some might not come

637
00:36:39,733 --> 00:36:40,933
Speaker 2: up the way you want them to come up. But

638
00:36:40,973 --> 00:36:42,893
Speaker 2: I just I think back to the England Test a

639
00:36:42,893 --> 00:36:45,613
Speaker 2: couple of years ago. You had to be proud of

640
00:36:45,653 --> 00:36:48,973
Speaker 2: that deck in that Test. I mean, went to the

641
00:36:49,053 --> 00:36:52,413
Speaker 2: last ball the last day and produce one of the

642
00:36:52,453 --> 00:36:54,973
Speaker 2: most exciting Test matches. You got to You've got to

643
00:36:55,013 --> 00:36:55,813
Speaker 2: take some pride in that.

644
00:36:56,613 --> 00:36:57,293
Speaker 4: I imagine.

645
00:36:57,733 --> 00:37:01,653
Speaker 7: Absolutely, we've had some cracking games here at the base

646
00:37:01,733 --> 00:37:03,933
Speaker 7: and where games have gone down for the last day

647
00:37:04,173 --> 00:37:05,853
Speaker 7: as far as a four day game or a five

648
00:37:05,933 --> 00:37:09,173
Speaker 7: day game. If we're able to get a game into

649
00:37:09,213 --> 00:37:12,373
Speaker 7: that last session on the final day of a first

650
00:37:12,413 --> 00:37:15,453
Speaker 7: class match, then I feel like we've done pretty well.

651
00:37:15,453 --> 00:37:17,813
Speaker 4: And there's been a good contest between Bat and Bob.

652
00:37:20,013 --> 00:37:22,933
Speaker 7: I can't play the game, so it comes down to

653
00:37:22,973 --> 00:37:25,693
Speaker 7: how the players approach the game and how they want

654
00:37:25,733 --> 00:37:30,293
Speaker 7: to I want to take the game, the direction that

655
00:37:30,333 --> 00:37:32,093
Speaker 7: they want to take the game, or what's what's on

656
00:37:32,093 --> 00:37:35,693
Speaker 7: the line. So all I can do is just make

657
00:37:35,733 --> 00:37:37,933
Speaker 7: sure that I've provided a surface that is going to

658
00:37:37,973 --> 00:37:40,773
Speaker 7: be a good contest, and then we follow the ebbs

659
00:37:40,773 --> 00:37:43,973
Speaker 7: and flows of the game and hopefully enjoy a great

660
00:37:44,013 --> 00:37:46,413
Speaker 7: contest at the end of the day. And one thing

661
00:37:46,453 --> 00:37:49,213
Speaker 7: I do want to stress is, and this is to

662
00:37:49,373 --> 00:37:52,733
Speaker 7: the turf community. It's not just cricket guys, as everybody

663
00:37:52,773 --> 00:37:59,453
Speaker 7: from croquet, freda, horse racing everywhere, Like, if anyone is struggling,

664
00:37:59,533 --> 00:38:05,133
Speaker 7: please reach out. Yeah, talk to your local get in

665
00:38:05,173 --> 00:38:08,173
Speaker 7: touch with myself, talk talk to your local the guy

666
00:38:08,213 --> 00:38:13,933
Speaker 7: that local golf course and whatever. Like, we're all fighting

667
00:38:13,973 --> 00:38:18,253
Speaker 7: the same battles here. I think what Matt Page has

668
00:38:18,253 --> 00:38:22,253
Speaker 7: done was very, very commendable. Being able to stand up

669
00:38:22,253 --> 00:38:26,213
Speaker 7: there in front of everyone like you did. It was

670
00:38:26,253 --> 00:38:29,693
Speaker 7: pleasing to see his management behind him as well. So

671
00:38:29,813 --> 00:38:32,333
Speaker 7: I just hope that everybody else.

672
00:38:32,213 --> 00:38:34,173
Speaker 4: Is getting that support around the place where things aren't

673
00:38:34,173 --> 00:38:34,653
Speaker 4: going wrong.

674
00:38:35,253 --> 00:38:38,013
Speaker 2: One final question, have you ever ever been asked or

675
00:38:38,093 --> 00:38:39,773
Speaker 2: told to prepare U shit in the type of pitch?

676
00:38:41,773 --> 00:38:41,973
Speaker 3: No?

677
00:38:42,413 --> 00:38:45,853
Speaker 7: I haven't been told to repairson type of pitch. There's

678
00:38:45,893 --> 00:38:51,693
Speaker 7: always questions from domestic sides and from I guess from

679
00:38:51,733 --> 00:38:54,853
Speaker 7: the international teams as to what we're doing where we're at.

680
00:38:56,413 --> 00:38:59,333
Speaker 7: I think what Gary Stead has done he's left a

681
00:38:59,333 --> 00:39:02,333
Speaker 7: little bit of a legacy here. It's a little bit

682
00:39:02,333 --> 00:39:06,613
Speaker 7: of an unknown legacy and where he just wanted us

683
00:39:06,693 --> 00:39:09,373
Speaker 7: curators to produce the best we possibly could.

684
00:39:10,613 --> 00:39:12,933
Speaker 4: And what we've actually.

685
00:39:12,613 --> 00:39:17,053
Speaker 7: Done is we've created our we'll re establish our venues

686
00:39:17,253 --> 00:39:21,773
Speaker 7: around the country. As to having our specific characteristics that

687
00:39:21,813 --> 00:39:23,813
Speaker 7: we can now go right, well, we could take this

688
00:39:23,973 --> 00:39:26,413
Speaker 7: game to the base and we could take this game

689
00:39:26,493 --> 00:39:27,173
Speaker 7: to Christs.

690
00:39:28,373 --> 00:39:29,813
Speaker 4: We've got options to take.

691
00:39:29,653 --> 00:39:32,453
Speaker 7: Our games to certain places in a style of and

692
00:39:32,533 --> 00:39:34,333
Speaker 7: play a style of cricket that we want to play.

693
00:39:35,413 --> 00:39:40,213
Speaker 4: I think that's a good arsenal to have for the

694
00:39:40,213 --> 00:39:41,013
Speaker 4: future of our game.

695
00:39:43,533 --> 00:39:47,413
Speaker 2: Can't argue without Hagen and that's right across the country. Hagley,

696
00:39:47,693 --> 00:39:51,413
Speaker 2: bay Oval, certain park et cetera. Men with passion who

697
00:39:51,533 --> 00:39:54,653
Speaker 2: are happy to share their knowledge about the preparation of

698
00:39:54,933 --> 00:39:57,933
Speaker 2: their strips. And I know it's a topic that you

699
00:39:58,053 --> 00:40:00,053
Speaker 2: spend a lot of time thinking about, Jerry. You do

700
00:40:00,173 --> 00:40:03,693
Speaker 2: match reports from the pitch and to try and assess it.

701
00:40:03,973 --> 00:40:07,133
Speaker 2: You're one of those curators at sixty minutes before the

702
00:40:07,133 --> 00:40:09,253
Speaker 2: game starts, no exis what's going to happen?

703
00:40:09,293 --> 00:40:09,613
Speaker 5: Aren't you?

704
00:40:10,293 --> 00:40:10,533
Speaker 3: Ah?

705
00:40:10,653 --> 00:40:14,853
Speaker 5: Yes, yes, I always look over at Hagen, and he's

706
00:40:14,893 --> 00:40:18,533
Speaker 5: looking very curiously at me and say, what the hell

707
00:40:18,533 --> 00:40:22,653
Speaker 5: are you doing? And it is It is that quizzical

708
00:40:22,853 --> 00:40:26,853
Speaker 5: kind of, you know, disbelief that I could actually be

709
00:40:27,053 --> 00:40:30,933
Speaker 5: talking about his pitch that he's prepared for so long.

710
00:40:32,013 --> 00:40:35,933
Speaker 5: But I will say I really enjoyed listening to Hagen there.

711
00:40:37,133 --> 00:40:40,493
Speaker 5: It's not an exact science, but we've been very well

712
00:40:40,573 --> 00:40:44,813
Speaker 5: served in New Zealand by curators or grass grubs, as

713
00:40:44,813 --> 00:40:49,253
Speaker 5: he calls himself. I've always thought that the conditions, and

714
00:40:49,293 --> 00:40:51,853
Speaker 5: I've said it to you many times, are the games

715
00:40:51,893 --> 00:40:56,133
Speaker 5: presiding geniuses. And it's the heat, yes, and it's the

716
00:40:56,173 --> 00:41:01,213
Speaker 5: wind and how much of each and gray murky days.

717
00:41:01,253 --> 00:41:04,333
Speaker 5: But at the very center of the conditions is this

718
00:41:04,413 --> 00:41:08,173
Speaker 5: thing called the pitch, and it determines who's in the

719
00:41:08,173 --> 00:41:13,053
Speaker 5: ten sometimes, whether it's one spinner or two or none.

720
00:41:14,493 --> 00:41:18,293
Speaker 5: How many batsmen should we have today? Should the keeper

721
00:41:18,333 --> 00:41:21,653
Speaker 5: be number six? And try and get more bowlers in?

722
00:41:22,373 --> 00:41:24,373
Speaker 5: Who's going to do the bowling? Is it going to

723
00:41:24,373 --> 00:41:27,653
Speaker 5: be a quicks pitch? You know, there's sort of a

724
00:41:27,773 --> 00:41:30,973
Speaker 5: slow seeming kind of pitch. Is it one that's going

725
00:41:31,053 --> 00:41:34,293
Speaker 5: to turn later? Is it going to dry out? Which

726
00:41:34,373 --> 00:41:37,133
Speaker 5: end should they bowl from? What lengths are they going

727
00:41:37,213 --> 00:41:41,013
Speaker 5: to bowl? You know it's while that it's you know,

728
00:41:41,053 --> 00:41:45,053
Speaker 5: there are margins for those, But those questions are often

729
00:41:45,133 --> 00:41:48,573
Speaker 5: determined by what's in front of you and the sorts

730
00:41:48,613 --> 00:41:51,413
Speaker 5: of fields as you walk in to watch the game.

731
00:41:52,733 --> 00:41:56,453
Speaker 5: Are there lots of slips? You know? Is there a

732
00:41:56,493 --> 00:41:59,373
Speaker 5: batpad because it's bouncing and seeming just a little bit.

733
00:42:00,093 --> 00:42:02,853
Speaker 5: What sort of shots can be played with safety? Are

734
00:42:02,853 --> 00:42:05,013
Speaker 5: they hooks and cuts or is it a straight batpitch?

735
00:42:05,733 --> 00:42:10,813
Speaker 5: What's the decent total on the surface, you know, those

736
00:42:10,933 --> 00:42:14,253
Speaker 5: kinds of things. And is it a declaration game? I mean,

737
00:42:14,293 --> 00:42:16,333
Speaker 5: how quickly do we have to score in order to

738
00:42:16,413 --> 00:42:21,773
Speaker 5: leave a target? All those questions are determined by what

739
00:42:22,053 --> 00:42:26,773
Speaker 5: Hagen faith does, and as I said, I think we've

740
00:42:26,853 --> 00:42:30,253
Speaker 5: generally been well served. I love the way that he

741
00:42:30,333 --> 00:42:33,733
Speaker 5: talked about the grass cover and that gives a course

742
00:42:33,773 --> 00:42:36,853
Speaker 5: a nice even pace. So you haven't got you know, dirt,

743
00:42:37,133 --> 00:42:40,373
Speaker 5: patches of dirt, no grass and then grass somewhere else.

744
00:42:40,893 --> 00:42:43,373
Speaker 5: So did you get nice even paste carrying on or not?

745
00:42:43,853 --> 00:42:48,213
Speaker 5: How old are those plants? What's the compaction does that

746
00:42:48,253 --> 00:42:51,733
Speaker 5: give us bounce? What's the moisture? Is it a pudding.

747
00:42:52,653 --> 00:42:55,413
Speaker 5: Does it kiss the surface? And he does what do

748
00:42:55,453 --> 00:42:57,813
Speaker 5: he do? Does he cook the core sample? Did I

749
00:42:57,813 --> 00:42:58,813
Speaker 5: hear him say cooking?

750
00:42:58,853 --> 00:43:00,453
Speaker 2: Ith?

751
00:43:01,093 --> 00:43:03,733
Speaker 5: What is that? On a Thursday? Should we go Should

752
00:43:03,773 --> 00:43:06,293
Speaker 5: we go round to the sort of the groundsman shed?

753
00:43:06,333 --> 00:43:09,973
Speaker 5: What with some chips? We'll have? Will have po poor

754
00:43:10,133 --> 00:43:11,293
Speaker 5: sample and chips?

755
00:43:12,293 --> 00:43:15,293
Speaker 2: Well, it is something they do for lunch because they've

756
00:43:15,333 --> 00:43:16,813
Speaker 2: got to spend night out time in the middle. But

757
00:43:16,813 --> 00:43:19,573
Speaker 2: in the weather conditions existing in the southern half of

758
00:43:19,573 --> 00:43:22,333
Speaker 2: the North Island at the moment, I don't know that

759
00:43:22,373 --> 00:43:24,693
Speaker 2: they'll be wanting to do too much work. The covers

760
00:43:25,173 --> 00:43:27,493
Speaker 2: will be on, so yeah, you're right, we might be

761
00:43:27,493 --> 00:43:30,653
Speaker 2: able to do that. One of these days. We might

762
00:43:30,693 --> 00:43:32,333
Speaker 2: be able to talk about some of the other groundsmen.

763
00:43:32,333 --> 00:43:35,493
Speaker 2: I mean, where's Armstrong. He would never have been told

764
00:43:36,053 --> 00:43:39,613
Speaker 2: to prepare any kind of pitch. As Hagen said, he

765
00:43:40,133 --> 00:43:43,013
Speaker 2: does the best that he possibly can and acknowledge that,

766
00:43:43,373 --> 00:43:46,333
Speaker 2: you know, sometimes you make a mistake, but generally our

767
00:43:46,373 --> 00:43:49,973
Speaker 2: ground staff to an outstanding job. Coming to the end

768
00:43:49,973 --> 00:43:53,453
Speaker 2: of proceedings, JC and we just want to quick look

769
00:43:53,453 --> 00:43:57,053
Speaker 2: at the highs and lows of the last year twenty

770
00:43:57,093 --> 00:43:59,933
Speaker 2: twenty five. I don't know there's quite a few. But

771
00:44:00,293 --> 00:44:02,933
Speaker 2: to me, from a playing point of view, the emergence

772
00:44:03,013 --> 00:44:06,653
Speaker 2: of Jacob Duffy in all formats has been.

773
00:44:07,213 --> 00:44:08,653
Speaker 4: A high of the year.

774
00:44:08,973 --> 00:44:14,053
Speaker 2: And the performance we mentioned earlier of Darryl Mitchell. What

775
00:44:14,213 --> 00:44:17,333
Speaker 2: have you seen as a high in your twelve month period.

776
00:44:18,333 --> 00:44:25,573
Speaker 5: Well, we didn't blame any tests, did we five Yeah,

777
00:44:25,613 --> 00:44:27,373
Speaker 5: so that might be a that might be a low,

778
00:44:29,053 --> 00:44:35,413
Speaker 5: but but yeah, I think I would agree with certainly

779
00:44:35,453 --> 00:44:37,413
Speaker 5: with Duffy. I think most people would say that. And

780
00:44:37,453 --> 00:44:41,293
Speaker 5: you might say for the rest of the bowlers, it

781
00:44:41,373 --> 00:44:42,893
Speaker 5: was a bit of a low, wasn't it. What we

782
00:44:43,093 --> 00:44:46,693
Speaker 5: what's happening to our fast bowlers? You know, why are

783
00:44:46,693 --> 00:44:51,933
Speaker 5: we losing so many to injuries? And we need to

784
00:44:51,933 --> 00:44:55,333
Speaker 5: be looking at those kinds of things. I think there's

785
00:44:55,533 --> 00:44:58,133
Speaker 5: there's the often perennial one that I can kind it

786
00:44:58,213 --> 00:45:01,933
Speaker 5: comes to mind was overrates. We're now down into the

787
00:45:01,973 --> 00:45:07,533
Speaker 5: seventies for over rates, aren't we? Yeah, and we either

788
00:45:07,613 --> 00:45:10,293
Speaker 5: it seems to me if it's going to be okay,

789
00:45:11,293 --> 00:45:15,733
Speaker 5: then change the rule. Change the rule seventy five overs

790
00:45:15,773 --> 00:45:18,453
Speaker 5: a day now. Whether people would be happy with that

791
00:45:18,613 --> 00:45:22,693
Speaker 5: or not, I don't know. Or the other option, enforce

792
00:45:22,973 --> 00:45:28,493
Speaker 5: the rule enforce the rule the World Test Championship says

793
00:45:29,173 --> 00:45:33,733
Speaker 5: you should lose points from the table. We'll do it,

794
00:45:34,413 --> 00:45:40,013
Speaker 5: do it, enforce them and the ICC need to do that.

795
00:45:40,773 --> 00:45:43,893
Speaker 5: You know. We often see on the board, don't we,

796
00:45:44,013 --> 00:45:48,893
Speaker 5: or on the telly that three overs behind, and so

797
00:45:49,813 --> 00:45:53,453
Speaker 5: you know, let us all know and let the teams

798
00:45:53,573 --> 00:45:57,933
Speaker 5: know you're going to lose points. They are playing conditions,

799
00:45:57,933 --> 00:45:59,773
Speaker 5: aren't they.

800
00:45:59,933 --> 00:46:03,733
Speaker 2: Yes, And that's what Australia and the first World Test Championship.

801
00:46:03,333 --> 00:46:07,293
Speaker 5: Right, And as it has in the past. What you've

802
00:46:07,373 --> 00:46:12,293
Speaker 5: just said that chances are that this this World Championship,

803
00:46:12,733 --> 00:46:15,573
Speaker 5: it will determine the two finalists in the by the

804
00:46:15,653 --> 00:46:19,373
Speaker 5: end of the cycle, the amount of points teams lose.

805
00:46:20,093 --> 00:46:23,093
Speaker 5: It's not a level playing field at the moment. Some

806
00:46:23,373 --> 00:46:29,053
Speaker 5: sides are meeting the requirements, others aren't. So at the

807
00:46:29,133 --> 00:46:31,813
Speaker 5: moment you're penalizing the wrong sides.

808
00:46:33,013 --> 00:46:33,213
Speaker 2: Of them.

809
00:46:33,253 --> 00:46:35,453
Speaker 5: Are You're penalizing the sides at the moment who were

810
00:46:35,573 --> 00:46:39,013
Speaker 5: keeping up with there playing conditions. And it will affect

811
00:46:39,053 --> 00:46:44,173
Speaker 5: the integrity of the competition, you know. So that's to

812
00:46:44,253 --> 00:46:47,813
Speaker 5: me quite a big one. But once again, of course

813
00:46:47,933 --> 00:46:51,773
Speaker 5: we don't we don't do those things, do we. No, No, no,

814
00:46:51,893 --> 00:46:58,933
Speaker 5: that'll hurt people's feelings the international. Yeah.

815
00:46:59,013 --> 00:47:01,813
Speaker 2: Yeah, winning the World Test Championship against the US totally.

816
00:47:02,333 --> 00:47:06,493
Speaker 2: I admired Van Muller getting three sixty seven and not

817
00:47:06,613 --> 00:47:09,213
Speaker 2: out they declared, and he was only three short of

818
00:47:09,213 --> 00:47:12,253
Speaker 2: Brian Lara's world record. It was against Zimbabwe, but it

819
00:47:12,333 --> 00:47:15,813
Speaker 2: had cleared to respect Lara's record, and that was proved

820
00:47:16,253 --> 00:47:19,893
Speaker 2: by a lot of people praising his sportsmanship. An unusual

821
00:47:19,933 --> 00:47:23,133
Speaker 2: thing to do, but it's something worthy of recognition.

822
00:47:24,093 --> 00:47:27,013
Speaker 5: Yeah. Well they won by about an innings in four

823
00:47:27,133 --> 00:47:32,333
Speaker 5: thousand anyway, didn't they against Zilla's So it was yeah,

824
00:47:32,493 --> 00:47:34,253
Speaker 5: it wasn't going to afit the match.

825
00:47:35,093 --> 00:47:39,253
Speaker 2: They're not playing any more home Test matches until later

826
00:47:39,333 --> 00:47:43,413
Speaker 2: this year something correct, twenty months between a home Test

827
00:47:43,493 --> 00:47:47,933
Speaker 2: match and that's ridiculous. Yeah, that's a low in terms

828
00:47:47,973 --> 00:47:49,293
Speaker 2: of the fact, you know, the fact that we only

829
00:47:49,333 --> 00:47:50,573
Speaker 2: played five Test matches.

830
00:47:50,773 --> 00:47:51,773
Speaker 4: What have we got this year?

831
00:47:51,813 --> 00:47:55,253
Speaker 2: Three in England, We've got three in Australia and I

832
00:47:55,293 --> 00:47:57,053
Speaker 2: think there's some.

833
00:47:57,413 --> 00:47:59,013
Speaker 5: There's one in Ireland, isn't there.

834
00:47:59,093 --> 00:48:01,053
Speaker 2: Yeah, and we've got India coming here.

835
00:48:01,333 --> 00:48:03,453
Speaker 5: That's correct, I think end of the year.

836
00:48:04,453 --> 00:48:06,893
Speaker 2: Yeah, so we might we might get seven.

837
00:48:06,693 --> 00:48:13,853
Speaker 5: Or eight, but better, a bit better. Yeah, I know, ye, yeah, Look,

838
00:48:13,893 --> 00:48:17,013
Speaker 5: I think I agree with you. In South Africa, they

839
00:48:17,053 --> 00:48:20,013
Speaker 5: then went to India and beat beat them in two tests,

840
00:48:20,053 --> 00:48:24,493
Speaker 5: didn't they? Yes, after that and now it's it's there's

841
00:48:24,533 --> 00:48:27,853
Speaker 5: a feeling for me the Big three is now becoming

842
00:48:27,853 --> 00:48:31,613
Speaker 5: the Big four back again, and South Africa have found

843
00:48:31,733 --> 00:48:35,853
Speaker 5: something and they've gone quite nicely. I think we've mentioned Zimbabwe.

844
00:48:36,373 --> 00:48:38,293
Speaker 5: I have a feeling that they played a lot of

845
00:48:38,333 --> 00:48:43,413
Speaker 5: tests this year. Yes, I don't know exactly the number,

846
00:48:43,533 --> 00:48:48,133
Speaker 5: but that's good that we have got them back into

847
00:48:48,173 --> 00:48:52,333
Speaker 5: a family. It's not a big family anyway, so that's

848
00:48:52,493 --> 00:48:55,493
Speaker 5: that's I think a bonus. We played them a couple

849
00:48:55,533 --> 00:48:57,133
Speaker 5: of times, didn't we two tests?

850
00:48:57,293 --> 00:48:59,533
Speaker 2: Was it one?

851
00:48:59,773 --> 00:49:03,133
Speaker 5: I think the Women's World Cup that that that it's

852
00:49:03,253 --> 00:49:06,573
Speaker 5: changed from Australia to India. There's going to be a

853
00:49:06,693 --> 00:49:11,173
Speaker 5: huge developed I think because of that. In India in particular,

854
00:49:13,493 --> 00:49:17,093
Speaker 5: it's kind of counterbalance that won by the our performance.

855
00:49:17,693 --> 00:49:20,413
Speaker 5: But I think a worst comes with that for me

856
00:49:20,533 --> 00:49:24,253
Speaker 5: as well. And that was the way that Pakistan and

857
00:49:24,613 --> 00:49:28,693
Speaker 5: other sides were reduced by playing games scheduled in Sri

858
00:49:28,813 --> 00:49:34,093
Speaker 5: Lanka in that Women's World Cup while it was Actually

859
00:49:34,853 --> 00:49:38,373
Speaker 5: I think it was a monsoon in Sri Lanka, wasn't it.

860
00:49:38,933 --> 00:49:42,013
Speaker 5: So all those games held there were just ruled out

861
00:49:42,053 --> 00:49:47,053
Speaker 5: completely and compromised, you know, the whole tournament really in

862
00:49:47,093 --> 00:49:51,493
Speaker 5: a way, and brought about by the conflict between India

863
00:49:51,573 --> 00:49:52,333
Speaker 5: and Pakistan.

864
00:49:53,973 --> 00:49:58,093
Speaker 2: Yes, and that conflict is going to continue for some time.

865
00:49:58,613 --> 00:50:02,853
Speaker 2: Just a few of the highs and the low So

866
00:50:02,893 --> 00:50:04,773
Speaker 2: that's a lot for them. Us on the front foot

867
00:50:04,813 --> 00:50:07,613
Speaker 2: to JC go and put your feet up and enjoy

868
00:50:07,733 --> 00:50:10,733
Speaker 2: some wow. I'll teach twity cricket and some one day

869
00:50:10,733 --> 00:50:11,813
Speaker 2: cricket as well.

870
00:50:11,853 --> 00:50:14,733
Speaker 5: Right, I'll switch you to the to the down end,

871
00:50:14,853 --> 00:50:17,453
Speaker 5: so that you you know, down behind the wind, you

872
00:50:17,493 --> 00:50:19,893
Speaker 5: know behind you, you'll be able to buy three bar

873
00:50:20,093 --> 00:50:22,453
Speaker 5: bounces the next overboard. You'll be fine.

874
00:50:24,493 --> 00:50:35,173
Speaker 1: All the wages of summarting. Do for more from News

875
00:50:35,253 --> 00:50:38,773
Speaker 1: Talks B listen live on air or online, and keep

876
00:50:38,813 --> 00:50:41,573
Speaker 1: our shows with you wherever you go with our podcasts

877
00:50:41,613 --> 00:50:42,693
Speaker 1: on iHeartRadio.