Australia v New Zealand: Kiwi bowler Neil Wagner pays tribute to Australia’s patience and tenacity

New Zealand came into the second Test at the MCG with a plan to unsettle Australia only to find the home side’s planning and execution was superior.

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Australia was always “a step ahead” of New Zealand and pre-match planning to address a short-bowling assault matched with game day execution has left the tourists scratching their heads for answers at the MCG.

Kiwi ironman Neil Wagner backed his team’s bowling plans despite taking just five wickets in five sessions in the face of dogged resistance from an Australian batting outfit steeled to bat once, and bat big.

A late flurry of Australian wickets in the search of runs delivered wickets for New Zealand but it was all a bit too late as the home team posted 467.

Wagner conceded that the Aussie top order had outlasted the Kiwi bowling attack, which would “always keep fighting”, but the visitors had been under the pump for most of a match that only the home team can now win.

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Steve Smith on his way to 85 against New Zealand. Picture: AAP

“They’ve been almost like a step ahead of us in some sort of way. They have showed a lot of patience and some clear plans and kept doing that throughout the whole innings,” Wagner, who put in 38-over effort to take 4-83 said.

“They showed a lot of fight, a lot of grit and stuck to their plans for a long period of time. Everything we threw at them they had really good answers for. Their top order put us under the pump from the start.”

Wagner singled out batting maestro Steve Smith for praise, despite removing him for a third time in the series with a rising short ball which the Aussie could only fend off to gully.

But Smith, who was out to the short stuff twice in Perth, had made 85 runs, and faced 242 balls in an effort which smacked of the patient intent the Aussies had brought to Melbourne.

“Credit goes to Steve Smith. He said he’s gone away and worked on the short ball, it’s something we felt we could get him out,” Wagner said.

New Zealand bowler Neil Wagner admits Australia was a ‘step ahead’ of his side. Picture: Michael Klein

“I felt even in the first couple of balls of his innings there was a lot that just ballooned in the air and just fell nowhere. That goes to hand and it’s a different ball game.

“The plans are still good, you just have to be ruthless against a quality batting line-up. They showed they are patient and if you do miss, they get on top of you. It’s doing it for longer periods of time.

“Sometimes it can be frustrating and then you leak a couple or runs. It’s a bit of luck you need sometimes in this game too.”

Australian century maker Travis Head said his captain Tim Paine’s positivity had also helped turn the tables on the Kiwis who had tied the batsmen down early before they put on a 150-run stand.

“I think it helped that Tim came out and struck the ball as well as he did,” Head said.

“It helped put the pressure back on their bowlers. It was difficult at times, so we had to soak it up for the periods when it would open up.”

Originally published as Australia v New Zealand: Kiwi bowler Neil Wagner pays tribute to Australia’s patience and tenacity