Christchurch: Star New Zealand pacer Neil Wagner on Wednesday said they need to keep piling the pressure on India during the second Test just like they did in Wellington.
New Zealand recorded a facile 10-wicket win over India and made the famed visiting batting line-up look ordinary with Tim Southee and Trent Boult bowling exceptionally well.
Wagner missed the first Test due to the birth of his child but joined the squad on Wednesday ahead of the second Test which begins on Saturday at the Hagley Oval.
“Hopefully, we can keep the squeeze on and bowl the way the boys bowled in Wellington and if we can keep piling the pressure on, we will make the job a lot easier for ourselves,” Wagner said.
He also revealed his plans for India captain Virat Kohli, saying his aim is to always get the opposition’s best batsman out.
“Every team I play against, I always try and target and go for their best players because you know what a big stride it makes within a team when you get their best players out,” he said. “Drying him up, making sure they don’t score and putting a lot of pressure on him from both ends (is imperative).”
The quick said it is not easy for Indian batters to come and adjust to the bounce here.
“It’s obviously tough for them to come here and play where there is obviously a bit more bounce and pace,” said Wagner.
“Obviously, playing in India where there is not that much bounce and pace around and so it is something new for them to adapt to,” he added.
“...sometimes when you tour overseas, it takes a match or two to get used to the conditions and adapt from there. No doubt they will be better and they will come back stronger.
“Definitely we look forward to do what we do best in our conditions and keep fighting the way we did.”
Kohli feels young Prithvi Shaw, who didn’t have a great outing in the first Test, is a “very destructive” player and all that he needs to do is have a clear frame of mind to come good.
In the Test series opener at the Basin Reserve, Shaw was found wanting against Tim Southee and Trent Boult in both the innings, thus drawing criticism over his technique.
“I don’t think at this stage, we need to sit down and discuss what’s going wrong because I don’t see anything wrong. It’s the execution of things which was not there,” Kohli said while talking to reporters on Wednesday.
“It is just a matter of understanding the pace of the wicket and conditions as soon as possible. Again, when he (Shaw) is in a clear frame of mind, he is very, very destructive. Once he feels that he can do it, I think it will be a different ball game. The mindset can shift very quickly,” he added.
Shaw has only played three matches for India till now in which he has scored 267 runs, including a hundred and a half-century.
