New Zealand defeated India in the World Test Championship, doing what very few kiwi cricket teams have done over the past century by winning in one of the trickiest countries to tour. This is a historic achievement for the Blackcaps and as a keen cricket observer, you probably know how hard it is to win Tests in India. We don't need to roll through the history books to find out how crazy this win was for the Blackcaps though, we only need to go back a few weeks to the series sweep defeat in Sri Lanka.

At this point, the White Ferns T20 World Cup success needs to be weaved in because both New Zealand cricket teams played their role in a horrible low of no wins only a few weeks ago. The lows of losing a T20I series to Pakistan in Aotearoa last summer, then embarking on lots of losing in both formats against England and Australia were parlayed into a high more aligned with sparking a spliff at the top of Mt Ruapehu in winning the T20 World Cup.

Blackcaps didn't just lose both Tests in Sri Lanka, they arrived in India after four consecutive Test losses (0-2 vs Australia in NZ) and a T20 World Cup stinker. All Blackcaps methods deserved to be questioned. When losing, players obviously aren't scoring enough runs or taking enough wickets. The most concerning aspect of losing Blackcaps was how fundamentals of kiwi cricket such as tactical know-how, fielding and grit had vanished. It didn't appear like much soul-searching was going on as the T20WC campaign flowed into the Sri Lankan tour, then players returned to Aotearoa and the only visible change was Tom Latham taking over as skipper.

In the shadows, there must have been some sort of soul-searching. Honest conversations, sharper focus, culture building type of stuff that all Aotearoa sports teams rely heavily on. Then the Blackcaps flew around the field to stop runs and snare delightful catches. The team looked closer and more inspired as the identity of Blackcaps that we have come to love started to emerge.

The tour of Sri Lanka wasn't just a key juncture because it may have instigated change, it also featured Rachin Ravindra and Will O'Rourke as the best kiwis in a losing effort. Ravindra was the only batter who scored 150+ runs in the two Tests and his knock of 92 was the highest score for Blackcaps in that series. O'Rourke finished tied with Ajaz Patel as the leading wicket-taker against Sri Lanka but he took his 8 wickets in 40 fewer overs, giving him a far lower average of 23.12 compared to Patel's 35.62.

O'Rourke smashed hands against Australia and he was the most economical kiwi seamer of that series, but he suffered an injury during the first Test. Ravindra scored the most runs for Blackcaps in those two Test losses as the only kiwi who had two 50+ scores and his 145 runs made him the only Blackcap to score 125+ runs.

Ravindra and O'Rourke maintained their exceptional mahi in four consecutive losses, sustaining consistent production in Aotearoa and then Sri Lanka. Ravindra is now the leading run-scorer for New Zealand in the World Test Championship with more runs, a higher average and higher strike-rate than Kane Williamson. Ravindra has a Test average of 46.94 after his score of 134 and 39* over the weekend, nicely aligned with his ODI average of 41.

O'Rourke continues to follow in the 'size whatever' footsteps of Kyle Jamieson, highlighting the funky skills of Aotearoa's sneaky seam depth. We have now seen O'Rourke smash hands against South Africa and Australia in Aotearoa, followed by Sri Lanka and India in Asia. When O'Rourke isn't hammering fingers, sending bouncers past shoulders or bowling the odd wild delivery; he is snaring wickets and lots of them.

Most kiwi seamers can sizzle to average 17.36 in New Zealand like O'Rourke, however O'Rourke also averages 19.93 in Asia. For context, Jamieson averages 17.37 in home conditions and 33.37 in Asia. O'Rourke has a Test average of 18.84 which is lower than his three averages in domestic cricket (20-25avg) and slightly better than Jamieson's 19.73avg in Tests.

Ravindra and O'Rourke were already on the radar as the most important kiwis, now they have delivered the goods in Asia over three Tests. Matt Henry took the most wickets in this epic Test win and reclaimed his spot as the best Blackcaps bowler, showcasing his impeccable stamina to maintain accuracy and enough zip on his seam presentation to consistently challenge opposition batters.

Henry took 5 wickets in the first innings of this Test in conditions that suited his skillset of seam movement. That's the pizzazz and it was followed by pure grit in the second innings, rolling through the most overs of Blackcaps bowlers (24.3ov) and showing up for hard mahi as momentum flowed in favour of the hosts. Henry was rewarded by taking wickets late in that innings and there was a bit of Neil Wagner in how Henry battled through adversity, inspiring his comrades.

Tim Southee and Ajaz Patel played their roles nicely. Patel only took 2 wickets @ 5.5rpo but those wickets knocked the top off the opposition batting line, after both openers were set and had seen off the seam attack. Southee only took 2 wickets as well but he got the party of 46 started, dismissed Safaraz Khan on 150 runs, was the most economical Blackcaps bowler of this Test (2.9rpo) and somehow found batting groove to whack 65 runs @ 89sr alongside Ravindra.

Folks love to hate Southee. Southee responded to the pressure with snappy swing and wobbler variation to move the ball both ways, usually operating above 130km/h rather than below that mark and scoring runs. Southee has had a funky knocks in recent times that creep under the radar: 26 runs @ 113sr and 33 runs @ 114sr when touring England in 2022, 10 runs @ 27sr in Pakistan, 73 runs @ 149sr in the win over England at the Basin Reserve, 34 runs @ 142sr in Bangladesh and 26 runs @ 130sr against Australia in Christchurch.

Southee was having a whack as he always does and yet his strike-rate of 89.04 was only a bit higher than Ravindra's 85.22sr across both innings. That's what makes Ravindra's skillset so enticing and his WTC strike-rate of 60.54 is the highest of Aotearoa's top-order, with the next best being Devon Conway's 52.79sr.

Conway scored runs! While it didn't appear like the smoothest Conway knock his 91 runs in the first innings saw him pounce on loose deliveries and after not passing 50 runs in 11 innings, Conway has scores of 61, 91 and 17 in his last three innings.

Will Young took his opportunity nicely and while that probably won't see him hold that spot ahead of Williamson, Young is as fantastic batter to have competing for 1st 11 selection. Young quietly cruised to 48* (63sr) alongside Ravindra to seal the win and he battled for 33 runs in the first innings, facing 73 and 76 deliveries.

Young now averages 28.5 in Test batting and he has the third highest batting average for all Blackcaps in this WTC cycle (36avg). Young averages 39.2 in Asia and his batting average of 25.2 in Aotearoa improves to 32.2 overseas, also averaging 37.6 under skipper Latham.

Onwards and upwards.

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