ICC T20 WORLD CUP 2021

November 2, 2021

Tim Southee

Dubai International Stadium

New Zealand

Pre Match Media Conference

Q. Following that win over India on Sunday night, can you give us an idea of how the team are looking to refocus ahead of tomorrow's game against Scotland?

TIM SOUTHEE: It was a great team effort the other night against a very strong India side. Very pleased with how that went. But now our focus, obviously, just to Scotland and three games in five days, which three-day games as well, which is a challenge in itself.

So as good as a win it was the other night, we know we have to park it and move on and look forward to a day game tomorrow against Scotland.

Q. You obviously don't get to play Scotland too much. Can you give us your memories of playing them? I think you might have played them a couple times once in a World Cup, once or two there?

TIM SOUTHEE: Yeah, played Scotland a couple of times over the years. It is a side we don't get to play a lot. So, yeah, it's always exciting times when you do get to play against a side that you haven't played a lot against. But obviously been an improving side and a strong side, as you've seen throughout the early stages of this tournament.

So yeah, it's exciting for both sides to come up against and play a team that we don't get to play that often. So it's something the guys are looking forward to.

Q. Confirmation you're going to play in the teal for this game. Wasn't too sure exactly depending on the qualifiers whether you would get to use the ultimate strip. But understand it's a strip the boys like playing in?

TIM SOUTHEE: The guys, when we unveiled our alternative strip, the guys were excited about it. I know a lot of the guys grew up watching the Black Caps as kids in the teal and black. So I know there was an excitement around the group when we were able to wear it in warm-up games.

A bit of a throwback for New Zealand cricket, and I know the guys are looking forward to getting out there in the teal.

Q. Staying with the teal theme. What's your strongest memory of the Black Caps playing in the teal?

TIM SOUTHEE: I think just growing up in the sort of early 2000s, watching the Black Caps in the teal. I played my first game for the Black Caps in the teal was sort of a bit of throwback for the T20 series in 2008 against England.

So I guess it holds fond memories for myself, not only growing up watching it but getting to play in it on Dubai as well.

I know the guys are excited about it. We brought it back for the Australian series as COVID hit, so we only got one game with it there. And I know there's a lot of excitement around the group and the guys are looking forward to wearing it tomorrow.

Q. As mentioned, there's not a massive history between the two sides in terms of Scotland. How quickly did you guys go into print mode for Scotland and kind of what Steady told you in terms of what you may have needed to learn about the Scottish side?

TIM SOUTHEE: We obviously played the other night. We had yesterday off, which was quite nice, for the guys to just try and get away from it for a period of time. We've got a busy week coming up so it was nice to have a day off yesterday.

But it's not only an opposition we don't know too much about and don't get to play that often, but it's also a day game.

There's two games will be night games, there's that to adapt to as well. We have our scouting meetings and we have our tactics and whatnot meetings over today and try to come up with some plans.

I think the beauty of these days is there's enough footage out there. Scotland obviously have been playing a bit of cricket in the lead-up into this tournament so there's enough footage out there for us to come up with some plans.

Q. You've mentioned the adjustment, the day games, what does change in terms of the approach?

TIM SOUTHEE: It's obviously a little bit hotter for the guys. We've had a couple of day trainings. It is considerably warmer during the day than at night. There's obviously no dew factor which you seem to be faced with in the night games here at the moment.

So, yeah, I guess it's just about what we do it anyway is try to adapt to the conditions, adapt to the surface as quick as possible, and it may react differently during the day with it being a day game and quite a dry place. So I think it's just about adapting and assessing and trying to make that change as quick as possible.

Q. Do the cutters in particular in the pre quarter ball come into play a bit more during dry conditions in day games, do you think?

TIM SOUTHEE: It's something we'll have to assess. We're back in Dubai where we played the other night. It's just about each ground here offers something different in the three venues we're playing it. So it's just about tuning up on the day and being as quick as we can to adapt to the conditions, whether that's with bat or ball.

Q. In your first match against Pakistan in Sharjah, you all had to bowl second. And we had seen how intense the dew was in that game as well. So going forward, if -- for instance, if you all have to again bowl second, so what is the push going to be for your team?

TIM SOUTHEE: It doesn't really concern us. Our next three games are day games. There shouldn't be much of a change between bowling first and bowling second in terms of the dew. So that's something that we have had two night games and now our focus just to day games where the dew shouldn't be an issue.

Q. Has the prospect of being holders of two ICC trophies in the span of three or four months been spoken about within the group just yet?

TIM SOUTHEE: No, definitely not. I think whenever you tune up to a world event, you want to do well. The goal for every side is to go as deep into the tournament as possible and try and win it.

So the mindset, when you go into a world event, doesn't change, but for us it's about each game as it comes. It's a tough tournament, a short tournament. You can't get too far ahead of yourself. And for us as a side, a strength of ours is we take each game as it comes. Things didn't go as planned against Pakistan but we're able to learn from it and move on, shift our focus to India. Things went well against India.

But we have to park that and move on to another opposition in Scotland. And as touched on earlier it's a busy week in three games in five days. It's just about focusing on what's in front of us and playing the cards in front of us rather than worrying too much about what's going to happen down the track.

Q. Also as a bowling group, do you reckon that this has been kind of very good preparation or the best preparation that you could have in these conditions considering a lot of you were part of different IPL teams as well?

TIM SOUTHEE: Yeah, I think a number of guys a part of the IPL here are playing in these conditions, playing not only in these conditions but playing the T20 format can only be a good thing. Like a number of sides have had a number of guys that were a part of the IPL.

So, yeah, I think it has helped. As a bowling group, I think all the majority of the bowlers were part, the pace bowlers were part of the IPL. I think we're taking bits from that, playing on the same surfaces and use that to our knowledge.

Q. I just want to understand, obviously you come up against Scotland tomorrow, the last challenge was against India. Is it fair to say that each team in this tournament represents a different challenge and will be a competitive fixture?

TIM SOUTHEE: The matches in the tournament, there's no easy games. You're playing against India in front of a pretty full house and then you go and play in a day game against Scotland. But I think each -- you've got to get yourself into a space.

And I think as a group we, like I said, we sort of worry about what we're trying to do, what we're trying to achieve and the style that we're trying to play. So that shouldn't really matter who you're playing against, but the mindset and the energy that we bring should be the same in every single game.

Q. Just an idea of the support that you guys have been receiving from back home and how that's helping you while you're away.

TIM SOUTHEE: Look, great. For the people back home, I know there's a few people that have had a few late nights or early mornings getting up and watching us. And everywhere we go around the world it's always nice to know there's people back home that are getting behind us.

So, yeah, it's always appreciated, the support you do get from home. And even more so when you hear of people getting up at all hours to get in behind us. So I know the guys enjoy it.

Obviously there's not a lot of Kiwis here in the UAE, but it's nice to see a few New Zealand shirts around as well.