Bengaluru, Mar 28 (IANS): Former New Zealand coach Mike Hesson feels that India were probably the best equipped team to have played a Test series in New Zealand in recent years even though they ended up losing 2-0. India were completely outplayed by the Kiwis, losing the first Test by 10 wickets and the second by seven. But the former Kiwi coach begs to differ and feels that the conditions were tough.
"I thought India are probably be the best equipped to have travelled to New Zealand, but the conditions were challenging," Hesson told the Mumbai Mirror. "They weren't ridiculous in any means, and they were challenging in both games (in the two Tests which India lost)."
India had batted first in both Tests and Hesson said that was an important factor as conditions got better as the matches wore on.
"The New Zealand conditions were challenging for everybody, especially in the first innings. Things certainly got easy later on. The first innings was challenging for anyone coming from overseas," he said.
Hardly any Indian batsman made a mark in the series, including captain and second ranked Test batsman in the world Virat Kohli. Hesson feels that Kohli and the others simply didn't get any time to adjust to the conditions
"When the ball seams, there is very little time to adjust. You need time to adjust your technique. He certainly was not the only one (to have struggled). Also, New Zealand's plans for Virat were exceptional. New Zealand have had the best of attacks for a long time and they challenged the Indians," he said.
Hesson is currently holed up in an apartment in Bengaluru. He was set to coach Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2020 season of the Indian Premier League but the season is under a cloud of uncertainty due to its postponement to April 15 and the subsequent three-week lockdown imposed by the Indian government.
The whole cricket calendar has grinded to a halt as well and Hesson feels that this will affect the game financially. "No business model of a sport can survive without income coming in. It will be a huge challenge to every nation around the world on how they are going to deal with this period of uncertainty. The world is dealing with things far more important than sports at the moment. But once we get to the other side, it will be a challenge," he said.