Spotlight on Mumbai-born Ajaz Patel as New Zealand eye series whitewash

While Mitchell Santner continues to attract kudos for his 13wicket haul in New Zealandrsquos 113run win over India in the Pune Test another Kiwi leftarm spinner is set to be talked about too as he lands here for the November 15 Mumbai Test mdash Ajaz PatelAt lsquohomersquoNot only is Patel Mumbaiborn his parents moved to NZ in 1996 He also claimed all 10 wickets in Indiarsquos first innings during NZrsquos last Test at the Wankhede Stadium in 2021 Patel 36 was chuffed then However it was an effort that went in vain But now a new challenge beckons as NZ aim to become the first team to win all three Tests in a series in IndiaAjaz Patel on Day Three of the first Test v India in Bangalore recently PicGetty ImagesPatel spoke to midday on Test No 3 of the series ldquoWe certainly have to try and win From my perspective it is about controlling what I can control regardless of what the surface presents regardless of who I am bowling to or what the situation is Itrsquos about controlling my end and controlling my mindset and looking to put my best foot forward and itrsquos all about consistency Test cricket is all about doing simple things well for long periods of time and so that will be my main aimrdquoAlso ReadYashasvi Jaiswal will look to make his first Test at Wankhede memorableWhat he is also prepared for is talk surrounding his Mumbai connection ldquoObviously therersquos going to be a lot of chatter that I will have to try and block out for periods of time mdash being back in Mumbai and the 10for and the expectations that I guess comes with It is really about just going back to being really involved in the game and being present in the momentrdquo said PatelThe one and only time NZ won a Test in Mumbai was in 1988 when John Wrightrsquos team beat Dilip Vengsarkarrsquos side in the second Test of the 198889 series But that didnrsquot eventuate into a series triumph In fact India clinched the rubber 21 in the third and final Test at Hyderabad Thirtysix years later the Kiwis arrive in Mumbai as series winners and after having their major meals for the day as it were The dessert is a bonus And Patel enjoys full realisation of the achievementldquoTo be able to win a series against India is always going to be special knowing how difficult it is and how few teams have been able to achieve what we have achieved in India We are all realistic and we know how difficult these conditions can be for foreign teams For us a country of around five million people to come here and compete with India who is such a powerhouse in world cricket and such a strong team in their conditions is quite special and it is hard to fathom reallyAlso ReadSources confirm Wankhede pitch will not offer excessive turnBig featldquoMost teams come here and dream of being able to beat India and to be sitting here now in a position where we have actually done that is pretty special I think what makes it even more special is obviously the first game Bangalore the wicket ended up being a seaming wicket which really falls back on our strengths as a New Zealand team However the second wicket Pune was actually turning and we managed to win on a surface that India generally dominate most teams on You really have to put in a team effort everyone has to contribute right through in small or meaningful ways Obviously Mitch Santner bowled phenomenally in the last game and he was a standout performer no doubt but the work that our batters put in and to be able to do that was phenomenalrdquo