Ross Taylor: 'New Zealand like being the underdogs and I think they’ll continue to do that'

Despite being among the most consistent teams across formats in recent years, New Zealand aren’t quite rated as highly as they should be.

The Black Caps, after all, have reached three World Cup finals since 2015, two ODI (2015 and 2019) and one T20I (2021). They have also been remarkably consistent in reaching the semi-finals of major events, the most recent examples of which were in last year’s T20 World Cup in Australia and this year’s ODI World Cup in India.

Read | Williamson ‘super proud’ of NZ’s 2023 World Cup journey after semi-final exit

And just two years ago, the Kane Williamson-led Black Caps defeated India in the final of the inaugural World Test Championship in Southampton to end a two-decade wait for a major trophy.

Former New Zealand captain and batting legend Ross Taylor however, doesn’t mind the fact that the ‘favourites’ billing doesn’t come to his team as frequently as it does to sides such as India, Australia and England. As for their consistency, Taylor felt New Zealand adapted to the tournament format better compared to bilaterals, and are somehow able to sneak through in the end.

“They play tournament format. I think obviously bilateral series you play five games. You can work a team out where New Zealand have worked out a formula, lot of times we’ve just sneaked in. Quite often that’s just the only.

“Even this year we lost fifty per cent of our matches but we still made the semi-finals. Played 10, lost five, won five. You need a bit of luck and I think we’ve done that. The consistency is probably just down to the team and wanting to play well and playing well in the tournament format,” Taylor told Firstpost on the sidelines of the Legends League Cricket in Visakhapatnam.

Taylor also added that the Kiwis didn’t really mind the underdogs status despite their consistency, and felt the Black Caps will be competitive in next year’s T20 World Cup that will be jointly hosted by the West Indies and USA.

“I think New Zealand will be competitive once again. They’ve always made the semi-finals but no one really puts them in the semi-finals when they pick their teams. I think New Zealand like being the underdogs and I think they’ll continue to do that,” Taylor added.

Taylor is leading the Southern Super Stars franchise in the second edition of Legends League Cricket, featuring retired superstars of the game, that was hosted in cities such as Ranchi, Dehradun and Jammu before moving to Visakhapatnam for the final leg of the group stage.

When asked about the experience of playing in LLC, Taylor, who quit international cricket in April last year, said it was of great help for retired cricketers to stay fit and continue pursuing what they love the most — play the ‘Gentleman’s Game’.

“It’s great not only for Indian players and international players but just getting out there and being active again. When you’re retired, you need something to motivate yourself and this is a great tournament just to keep fit and keep active but to also play with legends.

“It’s great not only for Indian players and international players but just getting out there and being active again. When you’re retired, you need something to motivate yourself and this is a great tournament just to keep fit and keep active but to also play with legends.

Taylor, who retired with 450 international appearances in a career spanning 16 years, felt the league has only got better and more competitive in the second season compared to the first.

“You never lose that competitive edge. You get slower, you get fatter, but other than that you never lose that competitive edge. But as I said, I think it’s a great way to keep the guys active and fit, so when they do arrive in these tournaments that they’re raring to go. I think the standard this year was better than last year,” added ‘Rosco’.