West Indies strengthen patchy batting in final bid to draw level against New Zealand

It has been more than 30 years since West Indies last won a Test in New Zealand, a drought captain Roston Chase has repeatedly highlighted during the ongoing three-match series.

The visitors have shown they possess a bowling attack capable of unsettling New Zealand’s batters, but their own batting has failed to function in unison, apart from the second-innings rearguard in the first Test – aided in part by New Zealand being without two frontline fast bowlers through injury.

That imbalance explains West Indies’ decision to strengthen their batting for the Mount Maunganui Test, with Alick Athanaze replacing the injured Ojay Shields in the playing XI.

Yet, no single change can mask a deeper batting problem that has forced West Indies into repeated introspection. Chase himself averages under 16 with the bat as captain, and, beyond Shai Hope and Justin Greaves, contributions have been sporadic.

Instability caused by form and injury has only compounded the issue. On the eve of the third Test, Chase said West Indies would target 300 in their first innings.

While that figure may appear modest, it is a realistic benchmark in Mount Maunganui, where early seam movement is typical, and spin increasingly comes into play as matches wear on – a trend underlined by New Zealand including Ajaz Patel in their squad for the match.

Although captain Tom Latham stopped short of confirming his XI, even without Ajaz, the spin options of Glenn Phillips and Rachin Ravindra could be enough against a fragile batting order.

New Zealand will also hope their pace resources hold up, with Jacob Duffy and Zak Foulkes having shouldered heavy workloads following in-game injuries to Matt Henry, Nathan Smith and Blair Tickner across the first two Tests.

From a batting point of view, there’s a lot to improve on; but collectively, New Zealand are still much stronger than the visitors.

The hosts will look to make it 2-0 after victory in the second Test in Wellington, while West Indies arrive with ample motivation and plenty to prove. But whether the visitors possess the skillset required to win in these conditions remains the big question.

Team news

Wicketkeeper-batter Tom Blundell has recovered from the hamstring injury that forced him to miss the Wellington Test, and looks set to walk back into the XI. So Mitchell Hay, despite scoring a debut half-century in the second Test, has been released from the New Zealand side.

Left-arm spinner Ajaz replaced the injured Blair Tickner in the squad, but Latham said the decision on whether he plays will be made on match day.

There could also be a toss up between Phillips and Michael Bracewell for the spin-bowling all-rounder’s role.

New Zealand (probable): Devon Conway, Tom Latham (capt), Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryll Mitchell, Glenn Phillips/Michael Bracewell, Tom Blundell (wk), Zak Foulkes, Michael Rae, Jacob Duffy, Ajaz Patel.

West Indies have announced their XI, and barring any last-minute changes, the only swap is Athanaze, known for his comfort against spin bowling, replacing the injured seamer Shields.

Chase has said he would bowl himself more in spinning conditions. Tagenarine Chanderpaul remains unavailable.

West Indies: John Campbell, Brandon King, Kavem Hodge, Shai Hope, Alick Athanaze, Justin Greaves, Roston Chase (capt), Tevin Imlach (wk), Kemar Roach, Anderson Phillip, Jayden Seales. (ESPNcricinfo)