“That’s the plan, but like I said, Gautam will make the final decision. It can change, but this is how it will likely be. We’ll just try and see that their loading, their fitness, their practice – we do as much preparation as the conditions permit.”
Gambhir and Bahutule, along with Brar, Nabi and Arshdeep, will travel from Mount Maunganui on November 16, the day after the fifth ODI, to join the Test contingent in Wellington.
As far as his own role in the Test camp was concerned, Kotak said he would look to create simulations of potential situations that the batters could face during the Test matches.
“I’m thinking in different phases,” he said. “If you lose the toss, if you bat first, there will be different requirements. If you bat second, it will be different. Third and fourth innings will be different. And in my mind, there is no doubt. If we play in India on turning tracks, there are phases. Here there are different challenges, but there are phases.
“So we’ll have to prepare like that, and depending on winning and losing the toss, depending on how wicket is behaving, depending on how weather is, and depending on how their bowlers are approaching, how big a spell they are bowling, I would do all those calculations, and then obviously it depends on the batters.
“How you talk to [Yashasvi] Jaiswal could be completely different to what you speak to KL, or Shubman, and then Rishabh [Pant]. So I personally feel that we have to see every individual’s strength, how they like to score runs, and in these conditions which shots will be possible and useful, and which things we can avoid. And then we can let them know that, and they can share what they think, because sometimes they also have ideas and it can be different from what we think.
“So after all that, whatever everyone thinks is the best thing, and then end of the day I always believe they are professional, and whatever action they take, eventually, like it or not, they will be responsible.
“And I personally feel toss also will be very important in these conditions and the wickets they give. It will be very interesting, the two Test matches after the one-dayers.”
Source: www.cricinfo.com
