Ross Taylor reveals the 'strange' feeling when Australia faced NZ behind closed doors

Veteran New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor has said that playing their ODI match against Australia behind closed doors against Australia felt like playing a warm-up match. The Aussies won the first ODI by 71 runs at the SCG to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series which has been postponed due to the global pandemic. Meanwhile, many of the global sporting events have either been postponed or cancelled due to coronavirus fear. The IPL 2020 that was supposed to get underway on March 29 has been suspended indefinitely as of now.

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'It was quite strange': Ross Taylor

"It was quite strange leading into the game. There were lots of whispers about the game being cancelled and everything happened very quickly. In the context of the match, turning up the preparation felt a bit strange," ESPN Cricinfo quoted Taylor as saying. "To me, it felt like a warm-up game, didn't feel like a true international match but I guess once you get into it it's no different to if you are playing a competitive game of backyard cricket or a club game, you give it your all. But I'm not going to lie, it did feel very strange. 

At the same time there could be a few games like that so I'm sure as players we'll have to adjust to that and get used to it," he added. 

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New Zealand cricket: Brendon McCullum regrets fallout with Ross Taylor

As reported by PTI, Brendon McCullum spoke about his relationship with Ross Taylor and how the tussle for Kiwi captaincy ruined the relationship between the two. Brendon McCullum grew up playing developmental cricket with Taylor and the latter was even his vice-captain in the Under-19 phase. After it was reported that Taylor and then-coach Mike Hesson were going through a bad phase, New Zealand went on to lose a few more important series. Eventually, an opportunity for a new captain opened up in New Zealand Cricket, but McCullum felt that he should not have applied for the role.

In retrospect, the explosive batsman revealed that he wanted to persist with Ross Taylor as the captain and grow the team from there. McCullum admitted that these happenings did strain the relationship that him and Ross Taylor shared. The two might still have some tension between them but that in no way means that McCullum does not respect the talent of New Zealand's highest-ever ODI scorer, he revealed in the interview. 

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(With ANI Inputs)

(Image Courtesy: AP)