Hamilton: New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor has unfolded the secret that has outwitted Indian bowlers in the ongoing ODI series, saying the Kiwis have focussed on denying wickets to the Indian spinners to wear out the rest of their attack.
The Kiwis have taken an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series after comfortably winning the fourth ODI here yesterday.
The highlight of their effort in the series has been the way Taylor and Kane Williamson have combined to counter the Indian bowling in the middle overs to repeatedly lay down the platform for tall scores.
The one time they batted second, yesterday, the Taylor-Williamson combination once again proved to be the game-changer.
"Yesterday was pretty tough against the spinner. Against (Ravindra) Jadeja, I don't think we laid a bat on ball in those first couple of overs. He bowled very well, on another day, he could have got a couple of wickets and stifled our momentum," said Taylor.
"In the past, I have played a few years in India and in New Zealand, it doesn't really turn as much and you just lunge on the front foot. But now our strategy has been to play off the back foot as much as possible and play into the gaps.
"Kane is a very good player of spin and we knew then that if we could negate them, we gave ourselves the chance to put pressure on their fifth and sixth bowler and that's what we did," he added.
Taylor said he aspires to be a consistent batsman in international cricket. He scored his ninth one-day hundred in the fourth ODI versus India.
"I have been trying to get into a mindset and a routine, and just play ball by ball," Taylor said, after his match-winning knock at Seddon Park.
"I have played enough international cricket to know my strengths and weaknesses, and just to give myself the best chance to be as consistent as possible. In the past, I have probably been consistent in a couple of games and been quite inconsistent for a few, so I want to try and be as consistent as possible."
