In his last ten Test innings against Australia, Kane Williamson has averaged just 23.
That is not a statistical anomaly or a misleadingly small sample size, rather it is proof he’s been worked out.
They badly needed to decode the Kiwi champion’s batting because, prior to that, he was dominating the Aussie attack.
In the first two Tests on New Zealand’s last tour of Australia, Williamson churned out scores of 140, 59, 166 and 32*.
Then Australia changed tack. They recognised Williamson was murdering them behind square on the offside. While many other batsmen struggle against good length bowling on a fifth and sixth stump line, Williamson was constantly opening the bat face and, with soft hands, gliding the ball just wide of the slips or in between point and gully.
This strategy was especially valuable early in the innings. Rather than playing expansive shots – drives, pulls and cuts – Williamson loved to kick-start his knocks by deflecting the ball behind square. This allowed him to stay tight in technique, with his bat close to his pad and right under his eyes, while playing strokes that brought him runs.
They brought him a lot of runs too, because Australia refused to put in place a third man for a significant part of that pair of Tests of the 2015-16 summer.
Williamson kept milking Australia to that vacant area and their quicks kept throwing their hands in the air like they were closing in on his dismissal. In reality, their best balls – their stock deliveries – were helping tick over the scoreboard.
Then, once the seamers grew frustrated, they all too often over-corrected their line, strayed on to his pads and Williamson picked them off through the leg side.
Watch the highlights and you’ll see how the quicks began to look bemused. They didn’t know where to bowl to Williamson. They couldn’t operate in the fifth or sixth stump channel and they couldn’t target his stumps.
Then someone came up with a plan. It wasn’t exactly a stroke of genius, just common sense.
(AAP Image/Michael Dodge)
Step one was to move both point and gully finer. Without needing to insert an extra fieldsman in his favourite scoring zone, they managed to crowd it. Then their quicks adopted a straighter, fourth-stump line, giving Williamson less room to open up his blade.
Step two was to bring their mid-on and midwicket straighter so he could not easily clip balls from off stump through those areas.
Suddenly, the stock deliveries were earning dots, rather than being glided or clipped for runs. The Kiwi had to expand his stroke play. No longer could he shelve the cuts, drives and pulls until he was on 50. He had to take some risks to build momentum.
Since that tactical change, Williamson has made 22, 9, 16, 22, 7, 97, 34, 14, 9 and 0 against the Aussies. He remains difficult to dismiss bowled or LBW because of his fine balance and tight defence, but by forcing him to become more adventurous, Australia have caught cheaply in seven of those ten innings.
The Aussies have pushed Williamson out of his comfort zone. Look no further than the cavalier pull shot that brought him undone for 9 in the first innings at Melbourne.
That navel-high delivery from James Pattinson was miles outside off stump yet Williamson tried to thump it over midwicket. It is the kind of shot he could get away with once he is well set, but not while new at the crease. It is the kind of shot he played regularly in 2015 once he had already bled the Aussies dry behind point.
When Williamson is playing the game on his terms, there is no chance he would attempt such a daring stroke so early in his innings.
But the Aussies have dictated terms to Williamson for his past ten innings. By plugging his safe scoring zones, they’ve herded him towards danger. The Kiwi star has found no answer.
Pope Paul VII
Roar Rookie
I didn't see it but read Blundell was adjudged not out before he scored and the Aussies didn't review. DRS had him plumb. Maybe the umps felt a bit guilty and the result was the Williamson lbw.
Pedro The Fisherman
Roar Rookie
Both were OUT. Where does the “evenerupper” aspect come into it?
Brainstrust
Roar Rookie
So Australia initially plan to bowl wide of off stump and then for variety on the stumps or down the leg side? That just sounds like wayward bowling. The plan to any unknown batsman is to bowl just outside off stump, Its all rather academic, as well as worrying about Williamsons mental state, apparently he is also under a lot of pressure. If your going to take test cricket seriously then plan ahead get used to the conditions before the first test match. That should apply to the media as well, they are too used being sycophants in this rather strange age, where we only have a few serious teams in Test cricket who have the money and resources and the rest are doing whatever. When the West Indies came over they had their better players in the Big Bash its seems a contradiction that you can pay your opponent to play elsewhere, and miss Test matches. Then as the only person to raise the point about West Indies these players, then i get hit with the excuse that Gayle cant play test cricket due to a bad back, but cant still hit it over the fence in T20.
Pope Paul VII
Roar Rookie
I'm not a kiwi. And I'm not saying it wasn't out. I'm just saying that whilst DRS helpfully backed up the ump it was an amazingly pinpoint decision based on trajectory, that you would struggle to get at any level of cricket. I didn't see Blundell's decision but I gather it was plumb. That's umps making a blue but no amount of DRS can help when there is no automatic avenue. Perhaps the human factor comes into both decisions, with the Williamson one being an evenerupperer as he came in later?
Pedro The Fisherman
Roar Rookie
Funny! When the ball pitches in line, hits the batsman in line and is going to hit the stumps then I always thought it should be given out LBW? Well done umpy. I can't believe how many Kiwis are on this site bemoaning a correct decision rather than acknowledging they are being beaten by a better side! "So and so (Williamson) was "unlucky""! "A bowler was injured" (similar to the bowler who was injured for Australia but hey, that destroys their victim mentality). The stars are not aligned ... Now about that Blundell LBW decision ...
Rob
Guest
I think Williamson has just fallen into a bit of a flat spot. That can and does happen to the best players. The couple of tired shots after 150overs fielding with little rest is probably a factor also. He gets an early LBW to a very tough decision and suddenly Australia has worked him out? Certainly Kane is down but if he get some time to settle and a start thing could be different. Warner also had an issue in the previous series but I don't think forgot how to bat? Maybe Broad worked him out? Credit to the Australian bowlers for getting him out to the middle early against the new ball by bowling well. No credit to Williamson for putting Australia into bat in Melbourne.
Rob
Guest
Hats off to Langer and the new bowling coach Troy Cooley. I'm sure the fact this bowling unit is fit and firing is a big plus but I have been super impressed by the tight lines and fuller length in recent times. I felt the over use of short pitch bowling had become the norm under the previous leadership. They have obviously been bowling these lines to our batsmen in the nets and it's also improved their techniques IMO. Langer obviously values line and length over the speed gun given he has keep Siddle and brought in young Richardson and Nesser to the squad.
DP Schaefer
Roar Rookie
Faf survived, not entirely unscathed and Virat - helps when your team wins. :thumbup:
Marty
Roar Rookie
I don’t disagree, I think Langer rates him and his selection in the squad was genuine. I was more trying to illustrate the ridiculous nature of criticism levelled at Langer and the selectors. Clutching at straws at it’s finest.
Micko
Roar Rookie
And India were lucky with the self imposed suspensions of Australia’s two best batsmen: Smith (C) & Warner (VC), and that also coincided with a lack of depth in Australian batting, which led to one of the worst top six batting lineups Australia’s ever fielded! Only Travis Head remains in the top six from that India series! :shocked:
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Roar Rookie
To be fair I think Langer was pretty genuine in singing Siddle's praises leading up to the second test. His form at the MCG this season was excellent with 15 wickets @ not very many. I've also been really impressed with his bowling in the death overs in the BBL for the Strikers. His use of slower balls and yorkers has been brilliant. Siddle also bowled really well in the first and second tests in the Ashes series with not much luck (not so good in the fifth if I recall). But you are right - the critics were falling over themselves to denounce his possible selection in the Melbourne test. I reckon Langer does a pretty good job of handling the press.
Brendon the 1st
Roar Rookie
That's how Anon rolls, sometimes has right, others he's not, but he's usually straight to the point.
Brendon the 1st
Roar Rookie
I Dunno, the Kiwi's were pretty pathetic, they'd had some good results and after Pakistan I think everyone was hoping for a competitive series. Also, bowling first.......duh, just duh.
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
That's true Micko. The captain has to shoulder some of the blame as well. Even the bowlers aren't exempt. If a bloke is continually getting off strike by gently rolling the ball into a certain area of the field, why wouldn't the bowlers tea-pot the captain and insist the gap be plugged. While it's fine to stick to a plan there comes a point where the plan needs changing if it clearly isn't working. That's my major gripe with the Boof era. There was far too much of this sort of thing imo.
Just Nuisance
Roar Rookie
I certainly accept your theory at face value Ronan. The outcomes support them.. However.... Playing Devils Advocate my cynical side niggles.... Firstly players like Williamson, Kohli, Smith, Root, De Villiers came under serious scrutiny from opposition technical staff, analysts etc. Surely the technical vulnerabilities would have already been spotted and probed on field. But an aside.... Last few series in South Africa the only batsmen to make serious runs on our challenging pitches are.... Williamson, Kohli and De Villiers.. It remains to be seen whether Root will this series. Think the captaincy overburdens him as it did to Steve Smith.
Marty
Roar Rookie
Totally agree. The progress made over the last 12 months both in results (Ashes, Pak and NZ series) and structure (top 6 looking reasonably settled, arguably the best bowling attack in the world) has been absolutely sensational. As you said Langer, Paine and co deserve a huge amount of credit for this re-build. An amusing aside to this has been watching Langer and the selector’s critics work themselves up into a lather over things that have not actually happened. Siddle was never going to play in the last test, anyone who paid the slightest bit attention to recent selection processes could see that. However it did give the critics, who are so desperate for anything to go on these days, a couple of days to rant and rave and criticise Langer for showing ‘favouratism’. Hilarious.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
It's baiting.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Freebie tickets for all fireys when it is all sorted.
Gloria
Roar Rookie
India and South Africa. It takes the very best teams playing top class cricket to beat Australia at home. This NZ side is 2nd tier and so have been thrashed.
Micko
Roar Rookie
Surely that's the captain's fault too for not reacting to it?