Martin - Consistency the key

Kiwi seamer hoping England will collapse under weight of expectancy

Last updated: 13th May 2008

Chris Martin New Zealand practising at Lords

Martin: Hoping for an upset

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Chris Martin feels consistency is the key to New Zealand's hopes of upsetting England in the upcoming Test series.

The Black Caps are firm underdogs to seal a series win on their travels after losing 2-1 to the same opponents on home soil this winter.

However, Martin believes the tourists, who will have skipper Daniel Vettori available for the first Test at Lord's, can cause an upset.

With Michael Vaughan's side tipped to seal a comprehensive triumph, the 33-year-old seamer reckons England could be sunk by the weight of expectancy from both the general public and the media.

Compete

"In the home series we competed well for certain periods of time, I think at times that wasn't quite enough against them," Martin told Sky Sports News.

"Now over here we are going to have to put our best performances on the board day in and day out to compete with these guys.

"I think the longer we can take the games the more edgy they will get and the more hyped the media and public expectation will be on England. That would be to our advantage."

Martin is also delighted that Vettori has been declared fit to lead the Black Caps into battle in the series opener, which gets underway on Thursday.

Match practice

The all-rounder injured his spinning finger during the warm-up win over Essex and has bowled just 11 overs on the trip so far, after joining up late because of his Indian Premier League commitments.

Despite his lack of match practice the captain is a vital component of the Kiwi side, and not just because of his talents with both ball and bat.

"He (Vettori) brings a certain confidence to our outfit, not just with the ball but with the bat as well," Martin added.

"The way he motivates and inspires us is definitely important to us."