'Jallikattu’ - The Kiwi style

You are in front of a television set. The camera zooms in on a grotto. And boom! A fierce bull charges down the arena, unaware of the term pusillanimous, amidst a determined lot who are desperate to stop its march.

This isn’t about Jallikattu, the most debated topic in recent times in Tamil Nadu. This is about Brendon McCullum and the charge of the Kiwi brigade in the shorter and shortest format of the game.

Isn’t there a striking similarity between a bull in fray at the Jallikattu and the Black Caps batsmen on a cricket field?

Baz hurries himself onto the pitch from the dug out and charges down at the best bowler in the opposition ranks invariably at the very first opportunity. Except on rare days such as the one against Australia at the MCG during the WC final last year, he lands the first punch.

Chasing 152 against the eventual World champions Australia; McCullum knocks the wind out of the Oz new-ball attack. Up against one of the finest swing bowlers in the world James Anderson, out comes a belligerent Baz and smashes the Poms to seal the deal in 12.2 overs.

The stage gets even bigger. It’s the semifinal of a World Cup. The target is a daunting 298 in 43 overs against the likes of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel; Add to it the pressure of playing in your own backyard. 45 minutes later, McCullum receives a standing applause at the Eden Park for taking down ‘Steyn gun’ with disdain.

The approach isn’t unique to McCullum. The entire Kiwi batting unit bears the motto of a bull in a bullfighting arena — blast your way through every hurdle. The previous statement came to light when McCullum had to miss a part of the Lanka series with an injury.

When this guy puts his head down and extends his arms like a golfer, the ball’s ‘going, going and gonee…’ He is Martin Guptill.

What if the target is 188, Guptill ensures the Kiwis reach home in 21 overs; What if the target is 118, Guptill and New Zealand do it in 50 balls.

A T20 match and NZ are in pursuit of 147. What Guptill does? Whacks the Lankans apart. Guptill walks back and in comes Colin Munro. Strikes an amazing 14-ball fifty to chase down the target in a mere 10 overs.

In a must-win T20 match against Pakistan, Guptill was the first to charge against the Pakistan attack. A 19-ball 42 followed by a Corey Anderson assault spelt doom for the visitors.

Irrespective of the situation, bat first or second, who the opposition are, what bowlers they are up against, the nature of the wicket, the attitude of almost every Kiwi batsman remains the same — take the attack to the opposition. It’s not mad hitting. It’s all about beat someone to the punch.

However, there can be an argument over the size of the playing field. It turned out to be the talking point ahead of the WC final. Having played every match in the lead up to the final in the smaller grounds of New Zealand, there were doubts over how they would fare in the bigger sized Melbourne. Indeed, they came a cropper in the crunch match.

It remains to be seen whether they stick to their newfound aggression in the turning tracks of the sub-continents or in the challenging conditions outside their backyard.

For now, they are ‘bullying’ visiting teams into submission with entertaining cricket.