London // New Zealand’s Tim Southee will return to the scene of one of his greatest triumphs for the first Test against England at Lord’s.
Two years ago, the swing bowler gained a coveted place on the Lord’s honours board with a match haul of 10 for 108, only for New Zealand to experience a crushing 170-run defeat as they were dismissed for just 68 in their second innings en route to a 2-0 Test series loss.
But Southee was on the winning side in February when his stunning seven-wicket haul set up a crushing victory for the Black Caps over England in Wellington during the World Cup.
Now he is aiming to enjoy more red-ball success in what will be the 100th Test between England and New Zealand.
The tourists have won just four of their previous 52 Tests in England.
Since their last visit in 2013, New Zealand have won four and drawn two of six Test series but they will go into Thursday’s match with half their squad, including Southee and dynamic captain Brendon McCullum, having only just arrived in England after stints in the Indian Premier League.
“It’s always nice to come back to a ground where you’ve had success. But you start on zero again on Thursday,” Southee said.
With England’s top order having been exposed during their recent third Test defeat by the West Indies in Barbados, the sacking of coach Peter Moores and the installation of a new management team — all against the backdrop of the controversy surrounding Kevin Pietersen’s continuing international exile — many pundits have forecast a series win for the tourists in this two-match contest.
Southee and left-armer Trent Boult have, for several years, formed a potent pace attack.
But the key to how New Zealand perform in this two-Test series is likely to rest with their top-order batting.
Thursday’s match is set to witness the Test return of in-form opener Martin Guptill, who has not played Test cricket since the 2013 tour. But he was the leading run scorer at the World Cup, where his tally included a tournament record 237 not out against the West Indies.
Last month he scored his maiden first-class double century for English county side Derbyshire and then made 150 in New Zealand’s final warm-up match against Worcestershire last week.
The top of the order has been a problem area for England, too, although captain Alastair Cook did end his near two-year wait for his 26th Test hundred in the West Indies.
But while England have remained loyal to Cook, Yorkshire’s Adam Lyth will become the captain’s sixth opening partner in three years should he, as expected, make his Test debut following the retirement of Jonathan Trott.
Bowler Stuart Broad was in no doubt about the importance of the match ahead of England’s home Ashes series with Australia. “It’s vital to win this series against New Zealand,” Broad said.
“It’s a good opportunity going into the first Test for us to concentrate on the actual cricket, how we are going to up our game, get results and how we are going to up our love for cricket as a country.”
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @NatSportUAE
Sukuk explained
Sukuk are Sharia-compliant financial certificates issued by governments, corporates and other entities. While as an asset class they resemble conventional bonds, there are some significant differences. As interest is prohibited under Sharia, sukuk must contain an underlying transaction, for example a leaseback agreement, and the income that is paid to investors is generated by the underlying asset. Investors must also be prepared to share in both the profits and losses of an enterprise. Nevertheless, sukuk are similar to conventional bonds in that they provide regular payments, and are considered less risky than equities. Most investors would not buy sukuk directly due to high minimum subscriptions, but invest via funds.
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
THE%20SPECS
%3Cp%3EBattery%3A%2060kW%20lithium-ion%20phosphate%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20Up%20to%20201bhp%3Cbr%3E0%20to%20100kph%3A%207.3%20seconds%3Cbr%3ERange%3A%20418km%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh149%2C900%3Cbr%3EAvailable%3A%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Revibe%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hamza%20Iraqui%20and%20Abdessamad%20Ben%20Zakour%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Refurbished%20electronics%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410m%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Resonance%20and%20various%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Final results:
Open men
Australia 94 (4) beat New Zealand 48 (0)
Plate men
England 85 (3) beat India 81 (1)
Open women
Australia 121 (4) beat South Africa 52 (0)
Under 22 men
Australia 68 (2) beat New Zealand 66 (2)
Under 22 women
Australia 92 (3) beat New Zealand 54 (1)
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDirect%20Debit%20System%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sept%202017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20with%20a%20subsidiary%20in%20the%20UK%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Undisclosed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Elaine%20Jones%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%208%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”