Jimmy Neesham feels ball tampering will make Test cricket more interesting
Kiwi all-rounder James Neesham feels that Test cricket could have been more interesting if ball tampering rules were not imposed on bowlers. He also quipped that AB de Villiers is the only player he would pay to watch at the moment. In days where Cricket organisers are leaving no stones unturned to revive the lost glory of Test cricket, the New Zealander made a rather controversial comment on the same matter.
Neesham who is a part of the New Zealand Test squad for the on-going series has not been included in the playing XI in the first Test at Green Park, Kanpur. He said, “I would quite like to see what would happen if there were no rules on ball-tampering. If you could just do whatever you wanted to the ball. That would probably make Test cricket more interesting. It could make more tedious sessions more exciting with the ball reversing more.”
Last year, the ‘Black Caps’ made their most successful World Cup campaign by reaching the final but lost to the ‘Aussies. But the most nail-biting game was the semi-final against South Africa which Neesham witnessed from the stands at the Eden Park, in Auckland.
Recalling the experience, he said, “It was a crazy experience. I actually wasn't going to go to the game. And then one of my friends who I knew through media work had a pass in a private area, so I could watch the match from a private room and not have to deal with the kerfuffle that goes on with that sort of situation. But it was a really special evening for New Zealand cricket.”
“I will pay to watch AB de Villiers. You don't really pay to watch a lot of international cricketers if you are an international cricketer because it is a little hard to go in the stands and watch with the members of the public. It can get a little inconvenient, for obvious reasons.” said the ‘Black Caps’ member when asked for whom he would pay to watch live.
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With a full tour ahead against India at their own backyard, the team from ‘Down Under’ will have a huge task to play on turning tracks against quality spinners like Ravichandran Ashwin. The all-rounder admitted that his team has planned several ways to play the off-spinner, but denied revealing them.
“He is a high-quality bowler, a top-ten bowler at the moment, and in his own conditions, he will be a big challenge. But we have got some pretty good players of spin in our top order. We have been talking of ways to combat him. But I certainly won't be giving away my plans here,” said Neesham.