PakPassion.net had the distinct pleasure of meeting the new New Zealand captain, Ross Taylor, in the back drop of a promotional media event in Auckland. Here he talks about his cricketing idols, his personal performance and how he hopes to tackle the pressures of captaincy, the upcoming tour of Australia, as well as about an unexpected largesse from Kamran Akmal in a World Cup 2011 clash!
November 16, 2011
As we all know, PPer Shoaib Naveed is on a mission for PakPassion.net - he is touring Australia/New Zealand to bring us top quality coverage of international cricket, including a series of interviews of international cricketers over the next month or so.
In the second installment of the series, we present to you an extensive interview with the New Zealand captain, Luteru Ross Poutoa Lote Taylor. PakPassion.net had the distinct pleasure of meeting Ross Taylor in the back drop of a promotional media event in Auckland to launch the HRV Cup.
Taylor, who marked the start of his Test captaincy with an exciting victory over Zimbabwe earlier this month, spoke in great detail to PakPassion.net about his cricketing idols, his personal performance and how he hopes to tackle the pressures of captaincy, the upcoming tour of Australia, as well as his assault on the Pakistani bowlers during the famous World Cup 2011 clash between New Zealand and Pakistan on his 27th birthday.
PakPassion.net: You are filling some big boots, following the footsteps of the likes of Daniel Vettori, Stephen Fleming. Your thoughts on that and how do you intend to keep the flame burning?
Ross Taylor: I guess I have never thought of it that way. Following Dan you would always be literally filling in some big boots, but yes New Zealand has been fortunate enough to have a tradition of great cricket captains. At the end of your career, you would always want to look back and think that you had a successful run at it, and maybe even finish as one of the country?s all time great cricketers, but I am a long way from that and intend to learn a lot while at the job.
PakPassion.net: You have played under both of them, any favorites? I?ll put you on the spot and ask who do you think was better?
Ross Taylor: It?s hard to do that with captaincy, especially when both of them have been such great captains. I played a little under Stephen and he was regarded as one of the great captains at the time - tactically very strong and a really good cricketing brain. But most of my career I played under Vettori and he borrowed a lot from Fleming but has his own unique style as well. Really close to the players and an excellent man manager. They were both good captains in their own right.
PakPassion.net: You have had a sniff of captaincy now, tell me how has it affected your personal game? Some great players - Sachin Tendulkar is the first one who jumps to mind in this regard - have struggled to juggle their personal game and the act of leading the side. Do you feel any difference when at the crease?
Ross Taylor: I guess a little, but not that much so far. That is something I have learnt a lot from Dan. He was the best at leading the side from the front and getting the best out of himself while captaining and I want to follow him in this regard. Want to keep batting the way I have over the last few years and keep putting up the scores. I have been originally put in the side to score as a batsman and that?s my aim when at the crease. It is something I think that will also ease the pressures of captaincy and make the process of learning the tactical side of it more comfortable.
PakPassion.net: I wanted to talk about the World Cup clash against Pakistan. Was that your best birthday ever?
Ross Taylor: Definitely the best - I have got to thank Kamran Akmal for my birthday gift! I wasn?t high on confidence running into that game and the scores were a bit low as well. It just shows how much a couple of balls can change the way you play this game. Had a bit of luck go my way and ran into a bit of form and that is definitely the way I look at that match. Luck was on my side and I started to time the ball well and took a lot of confidence from that match on to the rest of the tournament and felt a different batsman following that match.
PakPassion.net: How big were you seeing the ball? Also, how much of it was bad bowling?
Ross Taylor: When you have been out there for a hundred balls or so, full tosses become a bit easier to spot. And by that time, the ball had started to come on nicely to the bat. It was a shortish boundary the end Razzaq and Shoaib were bowling from and I was backing myself to clear it even if I got a little bit of it on the bat.
PakPassion.net: The tour of Australia is going to pose a pretty stern test for the Black Caps. How do you see the team shaping up?
Ross Taylor: Oh we have a few players coming back from injury ready to knock down the doors. Playing Australia, our old rivals - I guess we don?t need any more motivation than to do better in their own backyard. We proved in Zimbabwe that we are a side gelling well together. But having said that, we have a lot to improve on, and with some of our main guys coming back into the fold, I can definitely see us putting the pressure on Australia, hopefully take it to the fifth day and anything can happen from there.
PakPassion.net: Talking about the fifth day, any thoughts running through your head on the last day of the Test against Zimbabwe? Did things get a bit panicky when the batsmen seemed to be on top and cruising home at one stage?
Ross Taylor: No, you always try to stay ahead of the game and you keep trying different things. When they come off, you look like a genius and when they don?t, it doesn?t look that great. Going into the fifth day, we were pretty confident, but the Zimbabwean batsmen came at us pretty hard, and credit to them for that. At the same time, picking up seven wickets in a session of a Test match though against any opposition is no mean feat and we should take away a lot from the performance, especially the way Vettori and Doug Bracewell bowled. They will take a lot of confidence from that into Australia.
PakPassion.net: Your thoughts on the novel experimental policies being applied by NZC recently, for instance, their selection methods which are being considered as regimental by some?
Ross Taylor: I guess there will always be people questioning any policy you apply, so I don?t see that as much of an issue. At the end of the day, if you are picking the right players and getting the best of out of them, disregarding any external issues, then the job is getting done and that is what the main concern should be. The team culture comes into it a little bit, and the senior player group has a lot bigger part to play after the selection gets done.
PakPassion.net: How much of a say do you have in the selection?
Ross Taylor: Oh I have a little say, not a big say or anything like that.
PakPassion.net: As a batsman you are a very strong puller and cutter of the ball - very Australian traits. What type of wickets do you like playing on?
Ross Taylor: Yeah, I don?t mind playing on surfaces with a bit of bounce and playing the back foot shots. But at the end of the day, it?s all about scoring runs and adapting to any sort of conditions to pile up the scores. Conditions in Australia are going to be vastly different from what we faced in Zimbabwe but that is just one of the challenges of modern day cricket and it is a challenge I am looking forward to.
PakPassion.net: Suppose you are offered a great opening batsman or a tear away fast bowler - who would you pick?
Ross Taylor: Oh we already have good opening batsman so I?ll take the fast bowler.
PakPassion.net: N.Z cricketers have taken a liking to T20 cricket. Where do your priorities lie and what should the balance be like?
Ross Taylor: Test cricket is definitely the ultimate form of the game and I rate it higher than any other form. In terms of balance, I don?t think they have figured one out that is right so far. We have a world ranking now and the aim is to be number one in that and win the World Cup but Test cricket has been around much longer than T20, which is still young, and ODIs, which are about 30 years old. It is the ultimate test of a cricketer's ability and a right gauge to judge yourself against the cricketers from the past.
PakPassion.net: Your idols growing up as a young batsman?
Ross Taylor: Sachin Tendulkar and Mark Waugh growing up. I wouldn?t say I emulated them as I had my own unique style and couldn?t ever bat as gracefully as them. Of the current cricketers, Sachin is still there, but Rahul Dravid is someone who I have developed a great admiration for playing with him at Bangalore and getting to pick his brains. Certainly one of the batsmen playing currently I have great respect for.
PakPassion.net: Pakistani players you like playing against?
Ross Taylor: Shahid Afridi, I have enjoyed playing with on the park. Just his all round game and how he goes about it holds a lot of appeal and I admire him for that. Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan are two of the most consistent [batsmen] in world cricket, let alone Pakistan cricket and I like watching them bat.
PakPassion.net: Maori cricketers and Polynesians are rare in cricket as compared to other sports in New Zealand, for example, rugby. Any special reason for that?
Ross Taylor: They are an untapped market and have not been exposed to cricket to the same extent as they have been in other sports. You will see them playing softball a lot and I think if they are given a chance and are exposed to it more, you will definitely see more of them coming through the ranks. We already see some results due to the exposure in recent years and I think T20 is a great avenue to get the Maoris and Polynesian populations involved in cricket more.
