Gary Stead: 'The whole idea of home advantage has disappeared' as India begin New Zealand tour

Gary Stead said "The whole idea of home advantage has disappeared a little bit around the world" during Andhra’s Ranji Trophy opener against Karnataka last week, as India begins an all-format tour of New Zealand from Thursday.

The 54-year-old former New Zealand coach, who led New Zealand to the ICC World Test Championship title in 2021 and was in charge when Tom Latham’s side beat India 3-0 at home in 2024 — India’s first Test series defeat in its own backyard since 2012 — is now the head coach of Andhra. A tweet accompanying the tour posted: "A beautiful Māori welcome to kick off the tour 🤝 The #NZvIND series starts tomorrow 🏆 #TeamIndia https://t.co/dxI3XOp9Yr".

Reflecting on changes in team strengths, Stead said: "[Earlier] when you played India, you’d have thought, ‘Oh, we’ll do a green track because they don’t have good seamers'. Now they have real quality seamers, the same way we had quality spinners when we came here [to India]."

On how the series might be decided, Stead said: "The battle will come down to the two batting teams. Generally, the wickets have bounce and carry. The two Tests are at Hagley Oval [in Christchurch] and Wellington, traditionally two of the bouncier wickets in New Zealand. If India can nullify New Zealand’s bowlers, I think it’ll be a cracking series."

Speaking about the broader Test calendar, Stead said: "India, obviously, is an amazing Test side, and we go to Australia after that. So there are six huge tests coming up. But if you want to be judged against the best, you’ve got to compete against the best."

Stead also urged changes to how tours are scheduled, saying: "Personally, I think the ICC should consider playing more multi-format type situations, rather than [teams] coming and going very quickly, and people forgetting about the series. Something like how the women do with their Ashes... and that could be something that takes off a little bit more" and he said he hoped such sojourns would happen more often.

The two Tests India and New Zealand will play would be crucial for both teams’ Test Championship hopes.