IND vs NZ | New Zealand aren’t confident enough to take the spinners on, feels Zaheer Khan

On the verge of a whitewash at home, New Zealand have a lot to ponder about with the final game of the series and their reputation at stake. The Kiwis’ batting has been their woe in the last three games as the batters have failed to go big against a quality Indian attack. Former India pacer Zaheer Khan believes that it is the middle overs, the over 7 to 15, which have been triggering the down fall of the Kiwi line up as Indian spinners strengthen their grip. After a big powerplay, the Black Caps have fallen prey to the spin trap of India hence losing their way ahead.

“Getting a wicket always has that impact on the game. But it’s about keeping the tempo going. When you have had a good powerplay you have to keep the tempo going. But what has not been going in New Zealand’s favour is that they aren’t confident enough to take the spinners on,” Zaheer said on Cricbuzz Live.

“That’s an area which has been their concern. We have time and again been saying that Kane Williamson is the only guy who has been putting that pressure on the spinners and in that stage of the game Indians have been taking advantage of that fact.”

The 41-year-old feels that New Zealand must take on the spinners if they want to win the final game and salvage some pride in the series. Left stranded in the middle overs, the Black Caps leave a lot to be done in the final over, which has been their undoing in the last two games where they failed to finish must win games, only to lose them in the super over.

“So their numbers reflect that they, the New Zealand batsmen, don't have much options to put that pressure after the powerplay, when the field is spread out, So that’s why they have been dragging the game at that stage and in turn putting the pressure on themselves to go hard on 11-15 overs. And that’s never easy with a quality bowling. So actually they are creating the scenario to which they are falling prey to,” he concluded.