Things havent quite gone along predictable lines on this tour so far. New Zealand was supposed to be heaven as far as the pace bowlers were concerned a place where the overworked tribe looked forward to green pitches,wind behind their backs and pleasant weather. In this Test series though,both Man of the Match awards so far have gone to batsmen Sachin Tendulkar in Hamilton and Jesse Ryder in Napier while the top wicket-taker so far has been off-spinner Harbhajan Singh. Its quite evident then that the pacers havent got all that was promised. But now,at the fag end of the trip,the Basin Reserve could provide the quicks with just the conditions they have been waiting for. The venue has a history of speedsters ending up with dream figures,regardless of the nature of the pitch. With the cold conditions conducive for longer spells,the prospect of running in hard and giving it all is inviting. Old timers at the ground speak of magical periods of play that men with high readings on the speed gun sparked. Lasith Malinga and Shoaib Akhtar have broken the back of New Zealands batting line-up at this ground and even when the pitches have been on the slower side,one strong session of breeze has changed the fortunes of the pacers. During the 2006 tour Malingas figures of 5/68 in the first innings saw New Zealand bowled out for 130,eventually resulting in a 217-run win for his team. Earlier,during the 2003 series,Shoaib Akhtar enjoyed greater success,ending up with a match haul of 11 wickets that helped Pakistan record a seven-wicket victory. Even the locals have enjoyed success here,with Chris Martin,New Zealands pace spearhead,bagging 40 wickets from nine Tests on this ground. Ishants chance Ishant Sharma,known to repeatedly cross the 140 kph mark,should be a handful here,especially if he bowls with the wind and not into it. The last time Sharma bowled at a venue where wind was a significant factor was in Galle during the Sri Lanka series. His three wickets bowling with the strong breeze in the second innings was a deadly display of destructive pace. Both in Hamilton and Napier,the Delhi pacer came on against the wind with the new ball,while his senior partner Zaheer Khan got the end with the edge. It remains to be seen how the wind blows for Sharma at Wellington.
