Australia and New Zealand need to put on a show if the First Test of the upcoming Test series to lift spirits.
Both countries are under a cloud at present, quite literally. The White Island volcano tragedy off New Zealand’s North Island has plunged that country into despair yet again – there were victims from both countries – while there is a pall of smoke shrouding everything in Australia’s biggest city Sydney because of out-of-control bushfires in New South Wales. The latter has already affected cricket with players in a recent Sheffield Shield match describing on-field conditions as ‘toxic’.
New Zealand recently beat England on home soil and the Australians have won twice by an innings against Pakistan since retaining the Ashes in England in the autumn so both sides arrive in good heart.
Australia Form and Team News
Australia appear on the rise again after last year’s debacle in South Africa.
No doubt the resurrection of Steve Smith’s career has been a key factor but the Baggy Greens now also have a fail-safe in Marnus Labuschagne. While one of those two are at the crease, the rest of the Aussie batsmen will feel they can build a big score in any situation.
David Warner scored almost 500 runs in two innings against Pakistan to largely erase the nightmare of his Ashes tour but is unlikely to find the New Zealand bowlers as accommodating. Joe Burns has probably done enough to nail down the second slot as an opener and Matthew Wade is a shoe-in among the middle order but other batting places are up for grabs.
The Aussie bowlers, of course, are always formidable on their own hard pitches and Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins will pose the Kiwis plenty of questions, backed up by the ever-reliable Nathan Lyons.
But there are concerns about the pitch at the MCG ahead of the second Boxing Day Test and smokey Sydney is due to host the possible decider with the First Test at Perth being a Day-Night match played with the controversial pink ball.
New Zealand Form and Team News
New Zealand are currently the second-ranked Test team in world cricket, three places higher than Australia.
They owe their high ICC rank to a record of six wins and a draw in their last seven Test series stretching back to the beginning of 2017.
In that run they’ve lost just two Test matches, one against Pakistan in the UAE and a second in Sri Lanka. They are captained by one of the best batsman in the world in Kane Williamson, easily the match of Steve Smith, and he enjoys solid support among the top order from Ross Taylor and Tom Latham.
The unflappable right-hander average more than 50 in Test cricket but the ‘Cool Cat’ does have a long-standing hip problem so it remains to be seen how the 29-year-old from Tauranga stans up to an intense three-match series. BJ Watling and Mitchell Santner are more than capable of picking up the pieces if required but whether front-line bowlers Trent Boult, Tim Southee and Neil Wagner will flourish on the quicker Australian pitches has to be a concern.
They are a team of battlers, however, as they showed in the Second Test against England when the tourists got on top.
Australia vs New Zealand Test Series Betting
 |
 |
 |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 1/3 | 3/10 | 1/4 |
| New Zealand | 4/1 | 9/2 | 11/2 |
| Draw | 6/1 | 8/1 | 8/1 |
There is no doubt that bookmakers have again underestimated the Kiwis by offering a general 11/2 against them winning the upcoming Test series in Australia and the 8/1 against a drawn series with Paddy Power, among others, could be even more attractive.
Australia vs New Zealand Head-to-Heads
New Zealand haven’t won a Test series in Australia in 34 years and have not won a Test match against the Aussies since 1993. They also lost to Tim Paine’s side in the World Cup in England in the summer so you can understand if there is an inferiority complex in, what is in terms of international cricket, something of a local derby.
Australia vs New Zealand Predictions
Test rankings suggest Australia still have some way to go to take their place back at the top table but Justin Langer’s men will have it in their heads that the New Zealanders are fair game and represent a good opportunity to start putting matters right.
Uncertainty about the pitch at the MCG and the fact that Sydney might be under threat combined with the First Test being a pink-ball game are imponderables but Smith and company can ride out the doubts and beat the Kiwis again, though are no value to do so in the current outright betting (1/3 with Coral).
