Wellington: Elated after having surprised India with consistent performances, New Zealand all-rounder Nathan McCullum said his team will aim for a 4-0 result in the ongoing ODI series by going full throttle in the inconsequential final match, here, on Friday.
At the same time, Nathan stated that the hosts would be wary of a backlash in the final game ahead of the crucial two-Test series starting in Auckland on February 6. “I guess the Indian team has been surprised with how consistent we have been. But they have still played some fantastic cricket. We have just seen a great ODI series here and that’s fantastic for one-day cricket and very exciting for international cricket,” Nathan said on Thursday.
“They will be quite hurt with the way we have taken things away from them at certain points. But they are not too far away from performing at their best. So, they probably have to give us a bit of credit as well for fantastic performances throughout the series,” he opined.
“When we first set out to play this series, we thought a win would be really fantastic. But the way we have played this series, to be as consistent as we have, 4-0 will be a fantastic result.”
New Zealand, meanwhile, have pencilled in pacer Matt Henry ahead of the final one-dayer to cover for Tim Southee and Corey Anderson, both of whom are carrying niggles.
According to Nathan, the Black Caps have been a tad casual in their approach in the years gone by, but that is changing for the better now. “If you look at the previous years of New Zealand cricket, we have seen a lackadaisical approach where we have lost a few games wherein we have wanted to win those.
“So this is not only an opportunity for us to win the series 4-0, but also to be consistent. And that is the theme of the side at the moment.”