Santner warns New Zealand faces tough task against India’s top three ahead of first ODI

New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner said on the eve of the first One-Day International against India at Eden Park on Wednesday that there are few easy answers to bowling to India's top order. "Teams have tried to go short at Rohit before, but he hits those for six now," Santner said.

Santner highlighted Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill as the core of India’s batting and warned New Zealand the trio combine experience, consistency and attacking intent. "Virat Kohli is an anchor for them. Shubman Gill has been outstanding," Santner said. "Their role is to go pretty hard at the top and then set up a good score in the middle and let their power come in at the end," he added, while stressing there are no secrets to bowling in the 50-over format and that the challenge is building pressure and adapting to conditions.

Kohli has scored 596 runs in 13 ODIs in New Zealand, including a century in Napier in 2014 on his first ODI outing in the country. Rohit has accumulated 437 runs in 14 matches, with four half-centuries, and Gill has 124 runs in five ODIs, including one fifty.

Santner said his bowling group had already discussed their approach and that the surface would play a major role in deciding tactics. "If the pitch offers more than the other night, can you do it for a long period of time and challenge the batter? And then if it's flat, how do we change? What does it look like? Subtle field changes," Santner said. "But I think there's not too many secrets with ODI cricket with bowling. It's just building pressure and trying to get wickets through that way."

The conditions at Eden Park could add another dimension to the contest; New Zealand recently piled up 259 in a T20I in Auckland. With the match scheduled for a late-evening start, dew could also become a factor. "I think it draws the crowds. We've had some really good crowds throughout the T20 series, and I expect they'll be the same with Rohit and Virat being here," Santner said.

New Zealand will be particularly wary of Kohli and Rohit given their records in the country, and Santner said the visitors must find the right lengths and maintain discipline to prevent India's top three from dictating terms. He also warned that plans on paper would count for little without proper execution.

The first ODI between New Zealand and India begins on Wednesday, with a late-evening start at Eden Park that could make dew an influencing factor.