This was nothing more than a coincidence, but to have the Blackcaps T20 squad named to face India around the same time as the 2020 World T20 tournament's draw was unleashed, was a glorious coincidence.
Today, Aotearoa's Blackcaps take on India in the fourth ODI with the series already on it's way into the cricketing heavens.
While the slump that Aotearoa's Blackcaps have found themselves in is a bit of a shock, the White Ferns' slump is more a case of the status-quo against the world's better nations continuing.
That was fun wasn't it? A trio of ODI's vs India and a trio of rather emphatic losses for Aotearoa's Blackcaps, reminding us all of how easy it is for the Blackcaps to go from bullies to being bullied.
The second ODI between Aotearoa's Blackcaps and India wasn't quite a repeat of the hiding dished out by India in the first fixture, although the kiwis were dismantled in classy fashion by the tourists.
Unfortunately for Aotearoa's White Ferns, losses in T20I and ODI cricket are becoming the status-quo and the start to Amy Satterthwaite's tenure as ODI captain has followed on from a lacklustre World T20 campaign.
Heads up: India's pretty good.
We’ve already taken a peek at the bowlers so it only makes sense that the beautiful batsmen would get their turn in the sunlight. Four years of fours and sixes and run outs and raised bats.
There’s a lot of water goes under the bridge over a four-year World Cup cycle. Four years ago Mike Hesson and Brendon McCullum were only just getting used to their new roles as national heroes and a passionate public had only just forgotten the initial struggles of that leadership combo.
As we are in this 'everybody gets a run' stage of World Cup preparations, you'd be forgiven for thinking that the most interesting Blackcaps are getting their big opportunity vs India.
These are careful times for the Blackcaps and coach Gaz, to the point where with big churs to Coach Gaz, we can't really dig too deep into what he says publicly.
Three games of Super Smash cricket over the weekend and all sorts of ins/outs, making it a difficult exercise when trying to suss out which domestic battlers are enjoying a splash of whack whack cricket.
Amy Satterthwaite and Lea Tahuhu shut the door on any chance of Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine reaching the WBBL04 finals, booking a spot for Melbourne Renegades in the semi-finals along with Sara McGlashan's Sydney Sixers and Rachel Priest's Sydney Thunder.
While everything has been lovely for the Blackcaps ODI group under new coach Gary Stead with guys like Ish Sodhi and Lockie Ferguson snapping up their opportunities, the forgotten folk are battling to stay in the mix.
Aotearoa's White Ferns squad to face India in three ODI's starting on January 24th, has been announced and there are a few minor tweaks around the solid core we have come to know and love.
Allow me to get this out of the way nice and early; Doug Bracewell is in my top-5 kiwi cricketers currently playing.
A Test series win and drawn ODI series vs Pakistan in United Arab Emirates then a Test series win and ODI series sweep vs Sri Lanka in Aotearoa, may have a few kiwi cricket fans thinking that Blackcaps coach Gary Stead is the chosen one.
Last time I wrote about the Super Smash, it was plodding along without much momentum or buzz and while we've had a steadier flow of game, there is still a plodding vibe to it.
Intriguing times for our Kiwi wahine in Women's Big Bash League 04 as Adelaide Strikers racked up a couple wins, via strong performances from Sophie Devine and Suzie Bates to give them a sniff of finals cricket.
On the surface, the Aotearoa vs Sri Lanka ODI series was all about runs and life wasn't too funky for the bowlers. Yet the difference between the two teams and a factor in the Blackcaps sweepin' Sri Lanka was their bowling attack, which took wickets at key times and snatched any hopes of a win away from the tourists.