Bowling coach Shane Jurgenson said that left-arm fast bowler Trent Boult who became only the third New Zealand bowler to take 250 Test wickets brought passion and energy to the team with his presence.
“Today was a special day for Trent. He’s become the third highest wicket-taker for New Zealand. He’s got great passion and energy which he brings to our team. He’s our energizer bunny in the warm ups. He loves his soccer. I think the skill and execution and the way he’s contributed to the team has been amazing,” said Jurgenson paying tribute to New Zealand main strike bowler.
“He’s a fantastic team man as well. He does a lot of hard work off the field. Doesn’t stop working on his fitness or his resilience. Those factors have contributed to the success he’s had, so as a team we had a few words about it. We’re really happy for him.”
Boult achieved that milestone when he dismissed Sri Lanka middle order batsman Angelo Mathews for two in the first innings of the second Test at the P Sara Oval yesterday.
“I think he has a very efficient bowling action. Overall it’s quite simple. I think that allows him to do what he does. Being accurate is really important in all parts of the world. He’s got an advantage being left-handed, and that creates variation for our bowling group,” said Jurgenson.
“For a long period of time he’s been performing well. He’s one of the best bowlers in the world and he’s proved that for a long time. He’s got that skill to expose any type of conditions that are available to him. I also think he can bowl across all different periods of the game. That’s really important. He’s one of the leaders of being able to do that - the ability to adjust to all periods.”
Boult has been immensely helped by his long standing new ball partner Tim Southee who is also closing in on the 250-wicket mark being three wickets shy of it.
“Tim and Trent have been doing it for a while. They’ve been creating wickets and they’re very accurate, and they’ve got the ability to swing the ball. Today there might have been a little bit of swing with the overhead conditions, and it just seemed to be doing a little bit,” said Jurgenson.
“They both work really hard on their fitness, and that’s a big factor in their resilience. And they don’t just play Test cricket. They play basically all formats. To play all formats and do as well as they’ve done is awesome. They’re always giving each other a bit of a hard time. That’s what’s great for the team - they keep things lighthearted. They support each other a lot too.
They back each other up on the field and off the field.”
On another rain affected day New Zealand took the honours by capturing four Sri Lanka wickets in the one session of play that was possible to have the home team struggling at 144-6.
“I thought we made a really good start. I thought we bowled well yesterday and today. Over the short duration of the game we’ve had so far, it’s been a good performance,” said Jurgenson.
“Even in the last game we’ve bowled well, but the difference today from yesterday is being able to build a bit of pressure and take wickets. Today I was really impressed about how accurate the boys were in putting on pressure from both ends. The guys, who came on later, after the opening bowlers, have been good as well. That’s been the difference in this game so far.”
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