JOIN OUR WHATSAPP CHANNEL
Brendon McCullum feels that New Zealand lack swagger in World Cup 2019
New Zealand started off strongly in the World Cup 2019 but have stuttered recently with two losses on the trot.
Former New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum feels that the Black Caps are playing with a sense of humility in the World Cup 2019 and are lacking a bit of swagger. After going unbetean, New Zealand have lost their last two games to Pakistan and Australia and will need to win their last game to England if they want to qualify.
"New Zealand are close to where they need to be but they’re playing with a sense of humility when they need to rediscover their panache. They’re lacking a bit of swagger. There’s plenty of people in that line-up capable of playing with swagger.
"They need to include (quick bowler) Tim Southee, who is a big player from a leadership point of view, and someone who brings confidence to the environment. I would love to see that come out, for them to take on games a little more than they have been. The other day, for instance, they allowed Australia’s fast bowlers to bowl short at them. We didn’t see anyone really take it on.
"When they had Australia 92 for five, they could maybe have gone back to Trent Boult, our main strike weapon. If they’re serious about going deep in this tournament, they need to free themselves up and England could be the perfect opposition for that to happen. It may just remind them how they play their best cricket, because they will be faced with a team with an expressive gameplan.
"England and New Zealand are similar teams. There are different pockets of power in both and it’s about how you use that power — whether, when you have the game in the grasp of your hand, you are able to reinforce it.
"If you go through the personnel, the more aggressive style suits both. There are a couple of players — Joe Root and Kane Williamson — who lock in to allow the aggression of other guys to come out, but they are also at their best when they have freewheeling players around them."
