Cricket - NZ couldn't have asked for better scenario against India: Shane Bond

Former New Zealand pacer Shane Bond has said that the Black Caps couldn’t have asked for a better scenario to take on India in the World Test Championship final. New Zealand headed into the inaugural WTC Final on the back of a 1-0 Test series win over England whereas India prepared for the final with an intra-squad stimulation match.

Bond backed New Zealand to wipe off the hard-luck factor in the WTC Final and get the better of India to lift the Mace.

"We couldn't have asked for a better scenario to play India in England with no practice. Us coming off two Test matches. We are primed to win something," said Bond on the TOI Sportscast.

"So I am hoping that some of the hard-luck stories that we have had in the last couple of World Cups, we will flip the script this time and lift up that mace and be the champions, which will be pretty special, pretty cool for our sport over here, because cricket is the number two sport in the country and for us to achieve that (win WTC Final) will be fantastic," he further said.

New Zealand finished runners-up in the last two ICC World Cups with the defeat in 2019 coming on the basis of boundary-count rule. Bond further said that winning WTC Final could change the landscape of how cricket is seen in a country where Rugby is the most favourite sport.

"We are a very small country. Always seen as the dark horse, the underdog. In the last eight years in particular the team has made two World Cup finals and tied one. That's the way I see it. And got really close," said Bond.

"For a country of our population, our resources, our finances to do that and now find ourselves in the WTC (final) is an incredible effort. Someone like me, who has played for the national team, I take a huge sense of pride in it. And I know everybody here is very excited about the Test match and think that we have a huge chance of winning," he said.