Good luck Iain. I really like to see NZ winning. Hope a few batsmen could make some runs in the 2nd Test. Too bad Bond is missing the game.

wish i could! just moved away from wellington back to auckland, really wish i could be there! good luck

Good Luck! Enjoy it. Nice to hear about the 93yr old.

Good Luck! Enjoy it.

come and gives the guys the support they work harder than your rugby team a lot harder. sp please come out.

keep this going...its been a good read

As you said, it's a BIG test match for you.You win this you'll win the series....and over 100% effort is required (specially from your batsmen; and I wish Ryder was there) from each one of you to win this and seal the series....I'm sure with Bondy out it'll add to the workload for you guys....Wish you all the very best...and hope you'll can celebrate just like in Dunedin....

Good luck tomorrow. I'll be following the match from here in Melbourne, wishing I was at the Basin.

Ian, wish you could comment on some of your posts as well, atleast after the test match is over :)

Good luck for the home test Iain! i home the welly crowd cums out and backs the boys as much as we did down here in dunnaz!! it was a great 5 days and a intense last session!! good work u showed lots of heart after the dislocation! GO THE KIWIS!

Be ready to get your asses wiped out kiwis..
Mind you, ur aspirations will be seriously dented in this test match at wellington as it was in 2003-04, the last time nzl played against Pakistan at the basin reserve.

Play hard mate. NZ's been putting in this sort of incredible intensity, especially while fielding, and it's made sure that there's no team I enjoy watching more. India's got more talented players, Australia's got some of the game's best out there, and South Africa are probably the best side playing right now. But it's NZ that walks out and as a side makes their nation proud, just by the effort, commitment, and spirit you can bring to the field.

There are some class batsman in the lineup right now, and it's time for them to fire. McCullum, Guptill and all the other underperforming batsman need to tighten it up and start batting the way the attack's been bowling. Then again, if you keep bowling like you did in Dunedin, you might not need that many runs on the board anyway.

Keep up the great writing, and more importantly, keep up the great bowling.

All the best tomorrow. This ground is the best place for you to really bowl your heart out and do what you do best. Hope you return with a bag full of wickets!

Ian good luck for tomorrow.bondy is out from the series.there will lot of responsibility on your shoulders.i hope that you could be the strike bowler and demolish the top order of the pakistan who is in out of form.

Ian good luck for tomorrow.bondy is out from the series.there will lot of responsibility on your shoulders.i hope that you could be the strike bowler and demolish the top order of the pakistan who is in out of form.

Interesting to read about West Indies labled as "not worthy of test status" (I don't agree) but I think that the Pak team is probably the weakest it has ever been. I know the Pak bowlers are good but they don't compare Akram, Younis, Khan, Saqlain, Mushie, Qadir etc. The batting is a huge worry and the opening partnership is still in experimental mode since Anwar & Sohail!!!

All d best Ian.. Hope d kiwis can pull d series off..

hi ian, by now you would be sleeping so have a very good sleep because beware of pakistan. they will come very strong on the second test. i only wish we have full five days cricket because it is reported wet there. your bowling attack seems something drub (i am sorry for the harsh word) without bondy. tuffy would add experience certainly but not the flavour and person of bond. anyhow, with chris, you, tuffy and vettori with slight help from elliot, it will be a tough combination to face.
best of luck mate. please dont get any of your fingers injured because we, in pakistan, dont want to lose another test. keep bowling normally!!

I eagerly await another interesting test match. Pakistan, after getting acclimatised to New Zealand conditions now, will knock your boots off. Go Akmal brothers and Mohammed Amer!! I dont mean to knock you on your own blog, I wish you good luck as well..may you get 10 wickets in the match but Pakistan still win it in the end!

good luck Iain :)

i'm from india, does that count, we will be cheering up for you from here! go blackcaps.

Good luck, Iain, but not too much luck. A Pakistan supporter here. Still a little bitter about those three big wickets you took in the last game but heres to another great game of test match cricket. Keep writing!

If rain doesnt interrupt much we will see another exciting match good fast seam bowling is a treat to watch and i like the matches where ball dominates the bat hope to see here but all prayers for pak bowlers to rip through nz batting

Good luck Iain and wish I could be there to cheer you on - would drag my brother along.. ..will just have to make do with yelling a few 'ave a go ya mugs' from Zurich (assuming the Pakis are batting of course..). Hope I don't wake the neighbours.

Good Luck Ian, you were impressive on the final day though I think Pakistan was a but unlucky with Kamran Akmal's LBW decision. Being a Pakistani I will be rooting for my team to comeback to level the series. Hopefully you will not have the assistance of Imran Farhat in the slips dropping catches in this test.

Basin.....here we COME!

Hi Iain, why were you so rude when I met you at Basin 2 weeks ago (on the last day of the Firebirds match)? I am really a fan. Anyways... All the best!

Good Luck NZ and Ian. I hope u take 5 wickets tom.TC

Go Iain and give out your best and you will come out with flying color. My best wishes are with you and your team!!!

I can only make it on Monday afternoon, so you better let them hang on till then

The first Test match was extemely exciting. I felt your bowling was inspirational, after the finger injury you sustained.Both sides have the potential to win. Pakistan has immense talent, charisma and potential but it remains unfulfilled. If only they had a steady start to the batting and were more reliable with the fielding. It was great to see Mohammad Asif return to competitive cricket. His contributions were under appreciated. Mohammad Aamir is a remarkable bowler and has pace , accuracy and hostility. I also enjoyed Shane Bond and his persistence. However, I feel that it was your phenomenal spell after the injury that shifted the momentum towards NZ. Hoping that we have good weather and a climactic Test match. May the best team win.

Will be there. Good luck to the NZ boys, very keen to watch the Pakistani youngster batting as well.

I don't quite get how some of these rubbish comments gets through the filter. Get rid of some of the Pakistani supporters slur from this page please. Those that swear on someone's Blog, get a life.

Good luck Iain and black caps team! hope your finger is feeling better it looked pretty nasty getting put back in on the TV last weekend. I think she was trying to fire you up with the pain and it paid off :)

Good work on your batting also its coming along well.

just wanna wish paki the best of luck we been struglling alot lately with our opening parternship and hope was come out with an win inshallah :) goo paki

If you want to do this properly, then rather than chuck out the name
of some 19 year old who played well last season, why not look a the
top scorers so far this season?  See below.
Taking them one by one...... perhaps it's time Jones got a shot at the
big time again?  He ever only got the one test.  Would shore up the
frail top order.  He's not young, but Hayden showed guys in their late
30s can still contribute.

Merchant hasn't been around long enough.  Fulton's already in,
Sinclair has had more chances than a Monopoly board, Haig is just
another middle order plodder and both he and Broom have the problem of
not really solving the main problem, which is either with our openers,
or finding a lower order player who can bowl a bit.  So maybe Yovich
should get a shot in place of Elliot?

My five year old Finn was very impressed with you bowling still after you injured your finger. If you are ever in the Ngaio neighbourhood and would like to drop by for a coffee please do - he'd love to meet a real live Black Cap. Anyway, good work for Dunedin and good luck for the Basin!

cheers

Good luck Iain. Admired your guts last Sunday. If the weather is good tomorrow, and it should be, then pre play maybe some outfield practice for the whole squad taking the high ball. You know how it can steeple around under the wind at the Basin. Doing this will not leave Martin isolated as the only potential culprit. I really believe catching could decide this test.
Its on for a win but chances favour Pakistan slightly - the slightly depending on what happens in the field.

RA

Hi Ian

Good luck for today
hope you get get on as I see the weather is not that great. I'm amazed with the message that Moiz above has left you - I'm sure that all Paki's reading that will be ashamed of that comment

Chris

I wish good luck and bouncing back for Mohammad Yousuf to stedise PAK cricket. They need it realy for Yousuf.

Iain,
ALL THE BEST
GOOD LUCK BLACKCAPS

Hi Ian

Hope to see a good match but as we speak, you guys have PK tottering at 131/5. You know, its amazing to see the difference in body language between PK teams and the rest of the world and that is where we keep losing the game even before any tosses or the game being actually played. I hope you guys win over the next few days, you certainly deserve it and work for it more than we do.

Hope it will be another fantastic fight against PK & NZ.
I wish best of luck for both of the teams.

Quite heart breaking performance by pakistani batsmen. I guess u must be very happy after todays game but remember u will bat fourth here against kaneria and asif. Prays for rain not to interrupt. My man of the match is kaneria.

Good Job man, I think you bowled very well on first day. I am surprised it took Kiwis so long to get Imran Farhat out, should just bowl him out swingers and he will throw away his wicket, good luck for tomorrow, I hope Pakistan bowlers fight back and make this match interesting.