New Zealand have advantage in familiar conditions: Brett Lee

The clash between India and New Zealand, starting 18 June at Hampshire Bowl, will decide the winner of the inaugural ICC World Test Championship after the teams took the top two slots in the league stages that ran from July 2019 to March 2021.

Lee stressed that, while the bowling line-ups were evenly matched, New Zealand had the edge thanks to their experience in conditions similar to England’s.

“This is an opportunity now to find out which is going to be the best team currently around the world," Lee said in an interview. "It is a neutral venue with no home advantage. So when you think about who has got a chance of winning, you have got to say, it comes down to bowlers.

“The Indian Test line-up that will be on show, they have got some amazing talent, as do the Kiwis. It is pretty evenly matched there, though with the experience of New Zealand, because they have bowled in conditions that are similar back home, the Kiwis might have an advantage purely from that fact. Whichever team bowls the best will win the Test.

“What we know about the Dukes ball is that it talks. We know that when you go to England, when you bowl with the Dukes ball, it does swing around. If you play in England, and you do not quite get the right areas, you can go for runs, a lot of runs.”

The Blackcaps have come close to claiming an ICC trophy only to fall short by small margins. Lee emphasized the power of belief and a positive mindset as the way forward.

“For someone like New Zealand and Kane Williamson, they have just got to believe in themselves," he said. "And believe in their defence in terms of their batters, their top five, and believe that they can win it. You have got a great side, and they are playing in conditions that might suit them. But there is a lot on the line.

"Both captains would want to raise a trophy at the end. In terms of the Indian skipper, Kohli, he is such a dynamic player, such a great influencer for the team, a world-class batter. We know that Kohli steps up on the big occasions. He wants to see his side be the first winners of the ICC World Test Championships.

“They (Kohli and Willaimson) are different. Kane is a lot more conservative without being boring. He has got a great cricket brain. He attacks when he needs to. At the other side of the ledger, you look at Kohli, he is more of an aggressive captain. There is no right or wrong answer to any of these, but this is going to be a great opportunity to see which one comes out on top because they are different.”