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Embarrassing is the word New Zealand batsman Lou Vincent uses to describe the bowler-dominated National Bank Series with India this summer.Embarrassing because, like the strokemakers on both sides, the batsmen have been unable to buy a run, and with the World Cup on the horizon, failures are not really on the wish list for batsmen competing for spots.However, the chances are that Napier’s McLean Park may provide some much needed relief on Sunday.At the moment, a score of 200 would be welcomed by all and sundry, but in reality local history suggests a score of much higher will be required to win.If it is of the standard required, the relief will be shared by both sides.Vincent spoke to CricInfo today of the frustrations that are being similarly shared by the batsmen of the two sides.”It’s tough. You try so hard, you train so hard, the mindset of the wickets does play in the back of your mind a little bit.”You have the positive intent, but when the ball moves around a little bit you think two things: do I go out and guts it out a little bit or do I go out and swing the bat a little bit, and get a lucky 30, 40 or 50, which would have been the top score.”All he wants to do is hit a couple of firm cover drives, play a couple of pulls and hook shots, just to feel the ball off the middle of the bat.Vincent described what has happened during the series as “freaky.”Wellington was always going to be a little juicy but Hamilton was unexpected as was the drop-in pitch used at Eden Park.Complicating the situation in all games was the fact the bowlers were also doing so well.”As a batsman it’s embarrassing. That’s the only way I can describe it.”You go out there and you are armoured up, you’ve trained for hours and hours and you go out there. You face 15 balls for 10 runs and 120 is either the score you have made or you are chasing.”It’s been an embarrassing start to the season, apart from Mark Richardson who has shown such good application, but so many of the stroke players: you look at [Nathan] Astle, [Craig] McMillan, myself and even [Mathew] Sinclair to a degree, we’re all strokemakers and it cuts our game out a little bit.””It’s embarrassing. Kids say, ‘Louie you’re a legend’ and stuff like that and I’ve been 10 this week and 10 last week, and how is that going to be inspirational for an up and coming batsman?”As professional batsmen we’ve got to get smarter and do the job a bit better in our own conditions,” he said.India are equally afflicted and there wouldn’t be a cricket lover in New Zealand who has not been disappointed in seeing the Indians in full cry.But Vincent added that there was a responsibility for the batsmen to get smarter.”If we’re playing games in our own backyard we want to win and have the conditions in our favour. So as batters we have to get smarter.”We’re looking forward to Napier, it was optional today but everyone decided to make it a full team practice. Everyone needs to hit as many balls as possible. Guys know they have to keep working and keep strong,” he said.Vincent also spoke about the consequences of not scoring as the requirements demand.There was undoubtedly a feeling of pressure building up on the batsmen and he said it was only natural that if he didn’t perform the selectors might want to look at someone else.”You love playing for your country and if you nick out here and nick out there, get a rough decision, or something, then you’re four games without scoring then hold on! If you don’t score in the next game then you might be having a rest and someone else comes in.”That’s part of professional sport, it’s never going to be roses all the time. You’ve got to take the good and bad.”But for me, I just want to raise the bat and get the feeling of doing something for your country and because I haven’t done that it’s tough and it gets personal as well because it becomes emotional. When you haven’t done anything, it is really hard work,” he said.Despite the batting frustrations there was a buzz in the New Zealand side and Vincent said that while they were sitting around feeling a little flat today after the Auckland win, coach Denis Aberhart reminded the players that while the cricket wouldn’t win any beauty contests, New Zealand had still won two Tests and the first One-Day International.It was better to be in New Zealand’s position than India, he had told them.There was also a feeling that the World Cup was occupying the minds of the players already. It was something that affected the team in 1992 when New Zealand co-hosted the event and played such inspirational cricket that bad form against England in the preceding series, disappeared the moment the World Cup started.Vincent said it was great to see players like Jacob Oram stepping up.”We’re a good team. I can’t help thinking about the World Cup – and having a fully fit squad, I think it’s going to be our best chance.”We’re not playing in Asia where it is hot and you get run down, we’re playing in conditions where it is going to suit us with pace and bounce. We always seem to struggle in Asia,” he said.At the moment the New Zealanders are also struggling at home, but hopefully Napier will ease the burden and allow the cricket of both teams to flourish.

After tonight, any remaining doubts about Australian supremacy in world cricket must’ve been set right after what happened at Old Trafford. The world champions simply rose to a class of their own against England.

For me, the most exciting sight in cricket is two great fast bowlers running in with a new ball and four or five slip fielders waiting to swallow it up. It really must have shattered England openers’ confidence, already shaken by the Duckworth-Lewis adjusted target, when McGrath and Gillespie started roaring in with that field setting.Steve Waugh is surely a worthy leader of worthy men. He didn’t cringe from using up his pace duo to break England’s back having them bowl flat out for the first 17 overs.His decision, earlier in the day, to bat first under overcast conditions had me scratching my head, wondering what’s he up to? Then losing 3 wickets for just 27 runs seemed to further ridicule his decision. However, in the end all my apprehensions were laid to rest after this amazing and thoroughly professional display by his team.Now back to McGrath and Gillespie, I’d say they are now the best new-ball attack in the world. I say this not because the wet and windy conditions at Old Trafford came as icing on the cake. The way they ripped through the English top-order was a sight for sore eyes.

After England’s performance in the NatWest Series, I think it’s high time the ECB arranges for the maximum possible limited over games, if they are in earnest to put up a good show in the next world cup. This is the only way their young players can accustom themselves to the rigours of one-day cricket.After the burst by the pacers, Warne and Symonds had absolutely no problem in brushing off any remaining resistance and making England slide to their lowest total in ODIs.I used to think that age plays a major part in enervating a player’s physical and mental ability. But Steve Waugh has proved me totally wrong. At 36, he is as strong, both physically and mentally as one can be.

When Australia was 27 for 3, any player could have panicked, especially when Caddick and Gough were bowling magnificently. But perhaps the word ‘panic’ is not there in Steve’s dictionary. He played calmly; building useful partnerships with Bevan and Martyn, to once more lead his side out of trouble. I can’t even remember how many times he has led from the front.I think Bevan should’ve stayed a bit longer, having got on the right platform to build up his innings. But then England, especially Mullally, did bowl well against him, not allowing him the width he so cherishes and frustrated him enough to give his wicket away.Anyhow, today’s match will be long remembered for the Aussies sheer professionalism. They worked hard in batting, bowling and fielding to completely destroy a poor English outfit.

With England out of the reckoning, Pakistan has a place in the final to meet these awesome Australians. It won’t be easy for Pakistan to beat the world champions but under the newfound confidence and led by Waqar, they are certainly capable of giving them a run for their money. I do remember WC99 debacle, but this time it won’t be a one sided final.But we still have two matches against Australia left before the final and I, for one, am eagerly awaiting these. A good showing would a great morale booster for the Pakistan side.

Ed:Mudassar Nazar is a veteran of 76 tests and 122 ODIs. He is currently the chief coach of Pakistan’s National and Regional Cricket Academies. In view of the overwhelming interest of users in CricInfo’s articles, we have invited him to write for us.

Former USA vice-captain Timroy Allen’s career revival took another step forward on Monday with his inclusion, alongside 11 other players, for phase two of the ICC Americas Combine at the Indianapolis World Sports Park.The 12 players, including four provisional selections, will take part in the second phase of the trial, between September 25 and 27, before a final 14-man squad is picked for the WICB Nagico Super50 domestic tournament in January 2016. The second phase will see players participate in two 50-over and two Twenty20 matches.Allen captained the winning side in a 25-over trial match on Monday, taking two wickets in another sharp opening spell, following on from his impressive performances with bat and ball on Sunday.”It’s tough to describe the feeling,” Allen told ESPNcricinfo after his selection. “It’s a lot of guys here so you have to do something exceptional for them to actually say this guy’s going to be a part of it. So I was really excited. My heart was beating really fast prior to that but after that, I kind of relaxed a little bit and you come back to a realization that more than likely you impressed a couple of the coaches.”The main group is dominated by fast bowlers with the selection of Jasdeep Singh, Jeremy Gordon and Ali Khan along with Allen. Jasdeep backed up his strong performances at the World T20 Qualifier in Ireland with another solid display. Gordon, who arrived late to the trial from Toronto, bowled a hostile spell to snare two wickets on Monday. Ali Khan, who is yet to make his international debut for USA, consistently stood out with his pace and ability to bowl yorkers.Two batsmen and two spinners were also included in the main group. USA’s Alex Amsterdam made the cut after top-scoring in both trial matches, while Anirrudh Reddy Saddi backed up a decent effort on Sunday with 36 on Monday, before retiring to give others a chance to bat.The squad also includes left-arm spinner Danial Ahmed, who was left out of USA’s squad for the Ireland tour, and legspinner Prumjot Panesar from the San Francisco Bay Area, who beat more heralded slow bowlers with his flight and accuracy.The ICC had initially committed to naming a maximum of eight players for the second phase. However, after naming the first eight, fast bowling coach Courtney Walsh said that four more players would get an opportunity because the phase one competition was “so good, so tight and so close”.Fast bowler David Pieters and batsmen Krishneal Goel, Shiva Vashishat and Srimantha Wijeyratne were invited back as provisional selections. According to the four players, the ICC informed them that if they are able to pay their own way to come back for phase two – as all players were required to do for phase one – they would be given an opportunity to compete. Under the previously announced conditions of the trial, only the top eight players would be invited back to participate in week two, with their travel and accommodation paid for by the ICC.”I’ve never been involved in something so structured and professional starting from just the way they had sports performance analysts testing our athletic abilities,” Vashishat said. “They tested our skills with drills that we’ve never done before and quite honestly a lot of us did very bad but it was something new and speaking with Mike [Young] and working with Courtney, working with all these great coaches that we have here was a great, great experience.”Even the people that didn’t get selected, I know they’re going to take all this information back and turn into better cricketers.”

India took their series-winning streak to ten as they survived a scare when defending 231. Quinton de Kock and Dewald Brevis were dominant in taking South Africa to 118 for 1 in ten overs in the dew, but with a changed drier ball India took four wickets for 15 to scuttle the chase. Jasprit Bumrah was the main difference between the two sides with figures of 4-0-17-2 on a night that 432 runs were scored.Marco Jansen gave India one final scare on a breakout tour with successive sixes in the 16th over, but the fact that India could be assured of winning only after they had taken their eighth wicket underlines how difficult it is to defend totals in the night in India. Which is what makes the assault from Hardik Pandya – second-quickest T20I fifty for India – and Tilak Varma – 73 off 42 – all the more important as they turned around an innings that had begun to plateau.Four India batters, including Hardik and Tilak, hit a boundary first ball; Hardik was the most dangerous of them all, scoring 31 off his first seven balls and ending up with 63 off 25.Samson, Abhishek give India flying startWith Shubman Gill missing because of a foot injury, Sanju Samson served another reminder of his graceful, effortless hitting when the pace is on and the field is up. Abhishek Sharma was his usual self, charging at Lungi Ngidi first ball he faced and scoring 34 off 21. The two added 63 in 5.3 overs.Sanju Samson made 37 in 22 balls•BCCI

South Africa crawl backThat India got off to this start without South Africa bowling poorly was a sign the pitch was good to bat on. George Linde further emphasised it with three straight overs for 19 runs. He also got Samson out bowled with one that pitched leg and hit off. Samson scored 10 off 9 outside the powerplay, which is why despite all the languid grace he is not the first-choice opener. Suryakumar Yadav’s year ended without an international half-century as Linde shut him up and Corbin Bosch lapped up the consequent wicket.Hardik, Tilak turn the game aroundHardik, though, must have immediately made South Africa regret getting Suryakumar out. Like Abhishek and Tilak before him, he charged at a fast bowler first ball and went one better, hitting a six. He didn’t stop there. In the next over he rearranged Linde’s figures with two sixes and two fours. Not one of those balls was overpitched.Tilak hadn’t exactly been slow before Hardik, but now India went both barrels at the bowling. The two added 105 in 7.2 overs, often managing to hit sixes without getting close to the pitch of the ball, which suggested they would need each of those extra runs when they bowled. Shivam Dube also hit a six first ball to make sure South Africa didn’t escape even when the duo got out.Quinton de Kock gave South Africa a blazing start in the powerplay•BCCI

De Kock, Brevis threaten IndiaIn his 100th T20I, having copped a fair few blows on the fingers when keeping, de Kock stunned the crowd in the densest stadium in the world. First he got the better of Arshdeep Singh, scoring 32 off his first two overs and correcting his match-up against him, which previously read 56 balls, 66 runs and five dismissals.Reeza Hendricks’ ordinary career as a T20I opener continued when he gave Varun his first wicket in the seventh over, which only proved to be beneficial for South Africa. Brevis and de Kock teamed up to make Varun’s next over his joint-worst in T20Is, taking 23 off it. Hardik then got half a taste of his own medicine, which made it 42 runs in the two overs leading up to the drinks break and a ball change.Bumrah starts a never-ending slideBumrah bowled the first of his three remaining overs with the drier ball, and immediately had de Kock hitting an offcutter back to him. Somehow the ball stuck in his arms, and India got some room to breathe. Hardik bowled smartly to deny Brevis a hit into the shorter straight boundaries, getting him caught at deep midwicket with a slower bouncer.Varun Chakravarthy took two wickets in two overs to dent South Africa•BCCI

Varun’s night turned again as he had both Aiden Markram and Donovon Ferreira in successive balls. Markram had just managed the rare feat of successfully charging at Varun when he went down for a lap shot and was given lbw with an umpire’s call on impact. An identical wrong’un bowled Ferreira through the gate.David Miller did his reputation of being just a good frontrunner no harm as he fell for 18 off 14, but India still couldn’t breathe easy. One last time, on a tour that he has been the standout player and has played every match of, Jansen got stuck into Varun, making his the costliest four-for in T20Is.Fifty-five off the last four might have still been entertained had Bumrah not had two overs remaining. He got Jansen with a slower ball to seal the win for India.

Scorecard

Bangladesh defeated a New Zealand Cricket (NZC) XI by four wickets in a day-night Twenty20 game in Hamilton to pick up their first win of the tour. After the Bangladeshi bowlers had restricted NZC XI to a modest 133, Farhad Reza’s 17-ball 31 propelled the visitors to a win with three overs to spare.Sent in, NZC XI had a slow start reaching 19 for 2 in 5.3 overs. They were propped up by James Marshall and Scott Styris who added 39 for the fifth wicket. Marshall top scored with an unbeaten 33, which included one six and a four. For the Bangladeshis, opening bowler Shahadat Hossain took 3 for 15 off his four overs.The visitors’ chase began poorly with the openers falling cheaply but the next five batsmen contributed with scores over 20 to ensure victory. Three run-outs had threatened to derail the Bangladeshis’ reply, but Reza and Mehrab Hossain jnr added 47 for the sixth wicket to ease their side’s concerns. Michael Mason was the most effective NZC XI bowler, conceding only 21 runs off his four overs.After having lost two of their three previous games of the tour – with one match abandoned, the Bangladeshis will take some confidence from this win, which comes ahead of the first ODI against New Zealand on Wednesday.The game was a charity match to help raise funds for people affected by Cyclone Sidr, which ripped through Bangladesh in November and killed more than 3000 people. The ICC also donated US$250,000 to the Bangladesh Relief Fund at the start of the match.

New Zealand have announced that they will not be playing their two premier bowlers in the final match of the Chappell-Hadlee series against Australia at Hamilton on Tuesday. Having taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series in emphatic fashion, New Zealand decided not to take any risks with Daniel Vettori and Shane Bond, who are both carrying slight niggles.Vettori is suffering from a sore back while Bond has some hamstring stiffness. New Zealand followed up the first ten-wicket win against Australia with an exciting chase of 337 at Auckland on Sunday.The final match gives Jeetan Patel, the lone spinner in the mix with Vettori missing, a chance to showcases his wares. It’s also another opportunity for Peter Fulton, who returned to the New Zealand team with a calm and composed unbeaten 76, to get another innings under his belt.New Zealand team 1 Lou Vincent, 2 Stephen Fleming (capt), 3 Ross Taylor, 4 Scott Styris, 5 Peter Fulton, 6 Craig McMillan, 7 Brendon McCullum (wk), 8 James Franklin, 9 Mark Gillespie, 10 Jeetan Patel, 11 Daryl Tuffey.

Andrew Symonds and Shane Watson will spend the one-day tour of South Africa fighting for the allrounder’s spot for the three Tests starting in March. Watson has returned to the international squad after only two first-class matches and if his limited-overs comeback is successful he will put Symonds under extreme pressure to hold his place in the longer game.Symonds found his way slowly at Test level this summer, finally breaking free with a powerful half-century and five wickets with his medium pace at the MCG, after replacing Watson when he partially dislocated his shoulder at Brisbane. Trevor Hohns, the chairman of selectors, said Watson would be considered for the Test side “now that he is fit and playing again”.Watson, who has appeared in three Tests and 40 ODIs, said the situation was tight. “In the whole package there is not much between us,” he said in . “Roy’s [Symonds’s] fielding is amazing consistently. I hold my own, but he is one of the world’s best fielders. All I can do is continue to develop my bowling, which is obviously a major part, especially with Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne coming to the end of their careers.”The addition of Watson and Mitchell Johnson, his Queensland team-mate, in the 14-man touring squad disappointed Darren Lehmann, the South Australia captain. “We are close to being in the finals of the one-day competition and we still can’t get anyone in the Australian side,” Lehmann said in . “We have one of the leading run-scorers [Mark Cosgrove] and blokes who are getting wickets.”Lehmann feared the announcement meant that Jason Gillespie’s international career was over. “The big thing is they have probably moved on from `Dizzy’,” he said. “They are probably not looking at him for the next World Cup. It looks like they have made their decision.”Geoff Lawson, the former Test bowler, said Johnson’s selection was a disgrace after only eight wickets in the ING Cup this season. “His stats do not stack up,” Lawson told Sydney radio . “There are 25 bowlers in Australian cricket who have much better numbers than him. So how he gets in the team is an absolute disgrace.”

Jehan Mubarak will lead Sri Lanka A against England later this month in twounofficial four-day Tests. The national selectors, who met on Tuesday,picked a squad of 15 players for the two games, which are to be played atCCC Grounds from March 7-10 and at the NCC grounds from March 13-16.Mubarak, a 24-year-old left-hander, has been retained after a glowing tourreport in England last year when he led Sri Lanka A to victory in eight outof ten matches against the English Counties, who admittedly did not playfull-strength teams. They only lost one game to Somerset, the last match,and drew one match with the West Indians.Mubarak’s success in England prompted the selectors to fast-track him backinto the national side against Pakistan in October, a controversial movethat led to Tillakaratne Dilshan being ousted from the team against thewishes of Marvan Atapattu, the national captain. Under intense pressure,Mubarak was unable to clinch his opportunity but clearly remains in theselectors’ thoughts for the future.Thilana Kandamby, who has been in scintillating form for Central province inthe last two weeks, has been appointed Mubarak’s deputy for the tour. He has rattled off two centuries and his average before the current tournament final was 98.66. Kandamby also toured England with the A team in 2004, as did a total of 10 players selected in the squad.The new faces include fast bowlers Nandika Ranjith and Chanaka Welagedera,both of who are left-armers and play for North Central Province. Malinga Bandara , the legspinner, and Sajeewa Weerakoon, an orthodox slow left-armer who wasthe leading wicket-taker in last year’s Premier League with 50 wickets, plusbatsman Anushka Polonawita are the others given an opportunity to press fora place in the senior squad.Selection sources have also revealed that there is a chance that a handfulof the squad will also be selected for Sri Lanka’s postponed tour of NewZealand which starts at the end of the month. That team is expected to benamed next week.Squad Jehan Mubarak (capt)(CCC), Thilina Kandamby, (Bloomfield), Avaishka Gunawardene (SSC), Ian Daniel (Bloomfield), Shantha Kalavitigoda (Colts), Anushka Polonowita (CCC), Malintha Gajanayake (Chilaw Marians), Gayan Wijekoon (Chilaw Marians), Prasanna Jayawardene (NCC), Thilina Thushara (NCC), Nandika Ranjith (Tamil Union), Chanaka Welagedera (Moors SC), Malinga Bandara (Galle CC), Sajeewa Weerakoon (BRC), Suraj Mohamed (SSC).

Close v Pakistan
Scorecard

Having decided to bat first, New Zealand struggled to 151 for 5 on a day in which only 71 overs were possible in the second Test against Pakistan at the Basin Reserve in Wellington. Shoaib Akhtar was the star performer for Pakistan, bowling with plenty of fire to take 3 for 14 from 11 hostile overs, but Mark Richardson retrieved the situation somewhat with a typically dogged unbeaten 53.Coming back from a hamstring strain that kept him out of the first Test, Shoaib bowled fast enough to send at least one delivery down at 157 kmph, but he was also handled carefully by Inzamam-ul-Haq. Shoaib bowled only short spells, and that was still enough to cause all manner of problems for the New Zealanders. However, on completing his 11th over he pulled up lame and was in obvious discomfort when leaving the field.The match started under gloomy skies, and only 2.5 overs had been bowled when the players went off for bad light. It was enough time, though, for Shoaib to create more misery for Lou Vincent (0), who was beaten by a quick delivery which crashed through his defences (1 for 1). When they returned 30 minutes after the lunch break, Shoaib trapped Stephen Fleming in front with his first ball, which was also the last of his still-to-be-completed second over.It then became a battle for New Zealand to try and recover the situation. Richard Jones, playing his first Test, worked hard with Richardson but after scoring 16, Jones inside-edged an Abdul Razzaq delivery onto his stumps (41 for 3).Scott Styris upped the momentum, using the straight-drive to good effect. By the tea break he had scored 25, only three less than the more stolid Richardson. Styris was on the offensive immediately after the break but a promising innings ended on 36 when Akhtar returned to the attack and bowled a fast rising ball which Styris failed to evade. The nick was easily taken by Moin Khan (94 for 4).Styris was replaced by Craig McMillan, who shared a 51-run stand withRichardson. Richardson’s patience was rewarded with the 17th half-century of his career, which took all of 262 minutes to achieve. But of the many battling, grafting innings Richardson has played for the country, it was among the most valuable. McMillan was beginning to grow in confidence when he received a controversial lbw decision from Asoka de Silva off Shabbir Ahmed. McMillan had scored 26 and television evidence showed an inside edge onto his pad (145 for 5).Soon after, Robbie Hart, the nightwatchman, survived an appeal for caught behind off his gloves from Shoaib, a decision which upset the Pakistanis. Shoaib then bowled a short ball that struck Hart on the head. But in pushing for more pace, Akhtar strained himself and was unable to bowl the last over of the day. Richardson had been solid in defence throughout, and he will play the critical role in ensuring that New Zealand drive home the advantage of winning the toss.

New Zealand’s failure to better the country’s sorry record in the finals of the Australian tri-series dominated the newspaper headlines today.While the Australians tended to look towards their next series against South Africa, the winners, the New Zealand viewpoint looked again at the continuing problems the side faces in building a game plan.The New Zealand Herald: “It was New Zealand’s fifth consecutive tri-series loss and not only meant a 2-0 defeat in the best-of-three finals but a fifth unsuccessful attempt at lifting the silverware.”It was also something of a tepid finish to a campaign which had promised the unthinkable at the halfway mark, as New Zealand led the competition with three wins from four games.”Try as they might, the New Zealand top order could not find an effective mix of attack and defence, and were tormented by a South African attack which proved just as parsimonious as on Wednesday night.”The only period of relief for the New Zealanders during the opening stanzas was when a spectacular electrical storm hit the SCG, flooding the ground and delaying play for 90 minutes.”When New Zealand left the ground their innings was in dire straits at 75 for five, and it was only some desperate work from Chris Cairns – last man out for 57 – and Chris Harris which enabled the total to be boosted to 175 and avoided complete embarrassment.”The Sydney Morning Herald: “South Africa emerged from the near white-out of a blistering hailstorm to convert their recent history of domination of New Zealand into a major limited-over triumph with a 2-0 series wipeout of the Black Caps at the SCG last night.”Only Chris Cairns’s discretion and a splash of devastation in his 73-ball innings of 57 carried the ailing Black Caps past the 40-over mark as they sank to a 14th loss from their past 15 limited-over internationals against South Africa.”An effortless flick of the wrists by Cairns deposited a Lance Klusener (2-30) delivery over the fence at long-on before the punishing all-rounder drove the catch to Nicky Boje at the base of the Hill after his 75-run partnership from 115 balls for the sixth wicket with Chris Harris (31).”But for the best part of the final, the Black Caps struggled against the speed of Allan Donald (3-29) and Shaun Pollock (1-24), the medium-paced wiles of Jacques Kallis (3-23) and Klusener and relentless accuracy of finger spinner Boje (0-21).”The Weekend Australian: “South African captain Shaun Pollock said his team did some soul-searching mid-tournament after three consecutive losses as the turning point.”‘We went to Adelaide and re-assessed and discussed with the team where we could go forward and just asked everyone to stand up and be counted, and the guys have done that,’ Pollock said last night.”New Zealand captain [Stephen] Fleming said the Kiwis expended too much energy in their early performances and suffered from injuries and mistakes – particularly against arch-foe South Africa – as the series progressed.”The Kiwi openers Lou Vincent and Nathan Astle got their side off to a slow start last night, enduring more than four overs without scoring despite escalating taunts from the crowd.”It was quite literally the calm before several storms.”