×

India vs New Zealand, 1st Test: Luke Ronchi shows enough promise to solve visitors’ opening dilemma

Come the second Test in Kolkata from November 30, Ronchi may well find himself opening the innings instead of Guptill, who could manage only 21 and 0 in Kanpur.

Related articles

The highlights of Ronchi's innings were his temperament, ability to absorb pressure, negotiate the spin-threat well and the intent to stay at the wicket, which most of his peers lacked in the second innings. Image courtesy: Twitter
The highlights of Ronchi’s innings were his temperament, ability to absorb pressure, negotiate the spin-threat well and the intent to stay at the wicket, which most of his peers lacked in the second innings. Image courtesy: Twitter

Loss notwithstanding, there were a few bright spots for the touring New Zealand side in the first Test at Kanpur against India. Trent Boult and Mitchell Santner’s bowling in India’s first innings — also the latter’s superlative batting performance in tough conditions throughout the match —and skipper Kane Williamson and Tom Latham’s resilience in the first innings, which further pushed their side’s domination in the first five sessions of the game, were prominent. However, what stood apart was the contribution made by Luke Ronchi‘s batting in the middle-order. And surprisingly, he was not even a definite starter ahead of the start of first Test.

Henry Nicholls, who had scored 36 and 76 in New Zealand’s last Test against South Africa before coming to India, was expected to retain his place in the batting line-up. The tour match against Ranji Champions Mumbai changed the equations though, as a hundred by Ronchi (107 off 112 balls) opening the innings made him a strong contender for a place in the XI. But experts still felt that Ronchi may not replace the struggling Martin Guptill — whose selection for the tour in itself was questionable, as his form in the longer format did not back him and a certain Jeet Raval had done enough for a ticket to India. But as expected, the team management retained faith in him. What was unexpected though was Ronchi’s selection in playing XI.

The wicketkeeper-batsman was picked for a middle-order role and he did not disappoint the management as he made the opportunity count. Coming in to bat at No. 5 after the loss of two quick wickets, Ronchi scored a composed 38 and added 49 runs with Santner for the fifth wicket. The numbers may not be awe-inspiring, but they were decent in context of the game. He had reserved his best for the second innings though, where he hit a stroke-filled 80 off 120 balls. This was incidentally the highest individual score in the match. The highlights of his innings were his temperament, ability to absorb pressure, negotiate the spin-threat well and the intent to stay at the wicket, which most of his peers lacked in the second innings.

[read-also] 528772,528405,528786 [/read-also]

It was his stand with Santner on the final day, which delayed the inevitable and raised some slim hopes of a miracle in the New Zealand camp. But once he was dismissed, the road for India’s victory was cleared.

Been there, done that

Ronchi was asked to bat at No. 5 in the first Test. In the only Test he had played before, he batted at No. 7 and scored 88 and 31. But that does not mean he had never played on this position before. Back in 2013, when New Zealand ‘A’ toured to India to play three-day unofficial Tests, Ronchi had played at No. 5 and scored 125 in the first unofficial Test. The knock gave a good account of his ability to play in the Indian subcontinent against the turning ball.

On the same tour to the Indian subcontinent, the New Zealand ‘A’ side also travelled to Sri Lanka. Ronchi was a revelation there as well. In the second unofficial Test against Sri Lanka ‘A’, he slammed 134 batting in the middle-order. In the first game too he had got a decent score of 47. Moreover, he bats for Wellington, his First-Class side, at the same position too.

The team management was well aware of Ronchi’s ability to play spin well. Being in India before and doing well only helped, as he was asked to take up the mantle of batting in the middle-order for the opener of the all-important Test series.  He did well and it seems he has now killed two birds with one stone.

Opening blues

Never has Guptill been under so much pressure to perform like he has been on this tour. He was lucky to get into the squad for India series, but the selectors had made it clear only runs will keep him in the side. However, he failed in the warm up game against Mumbai as well. On the contrary, Ronchi scored a hundred in the second innings of the match while opening. Before leaving for India, New Zealand coach Mike Hesson had hinted Ronchi may come into the picture as an opener.

“It’s not your traditional New Zealand opener that you require over there, you need guys who can score against spin, find ways to rotate the strike and keep the game moving,” Hesson had said. “It does (bring Ronchi into the mix). Luke’s there as a backup batsman as well as a backup keeper. His ability against spin certainly makes him an option,” were the bespectacled coach’s words.

And come the second Test in Kolkata from November 30, Ronchi may well find himself opening the innings instead of Guptill, who could manage only 21 and 0 in Kanpur. Ronchi has had his share of blues with the opening position, as his stint at the top-order for the New Zealand limited-overs sides has not been fruitful.

But it is a role he has played for far too long for not being comfortable at it. Ronchi currently opens for his domestic side Wellington and has played as an opener in the past for Western Australia and Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) inaugural season (Yes, for all those who are unaware, Ronchi did play in the IPL season 1). There is no reason to believe why he can’t be successful as an opener in Tests.

If he does walk out to open the innings in Kolkata Test, it will be a huge moment in his nomadic career. From being part of Australian cricket’s set-up to representing them in One-Day Internationals (ODIs) to making a switch to New Zealand, his career has so far been a topsy-turvy ride. Maybe it is time for a new twist in this ride, which if comes good, can bring a fresh change in his as well his Test team’s fortunes.

(A self-confessed cricket freak, Chinmay Jawalekar is a senior writer with CricLife and CricketCountry. When not writing or following cricket, he loves to read, eat and sleep. He can be followed here @CricfreakTweets)

trending this week