Sydney: Legendary Kiwi all-rounder Sir Richard Hadlee has backed his former side as ‘slight favourites’ for the two-Test series against India beginning on Thursday at Auckland, despite the vast gap in the two team’s world rankings.
New Zealand have already defied the rankings with their one-day series win, in the process sending India from first to second in the ODI standings and lifting their own ranking from eighth to seventh.
According to Sydney Morning Herald, Hadlee, who has a record 431 Test wickets and 3124 runs, said the eight-ranked home side would take huge confidence from their shock 4-0 one-day series win over India and thus has all the momentum heading into the Test series despite India being second on the Test rankings.