'More mature' Devcich eyes ODI reboot

New Zealand allrounder Anton Devcich hopes the hard yards put in at training during the off season will pay off for him as he hopes to revive his stop-start ODI career.

Constantly hampered by injuries, Devcich is now back in contention for an ODI slot after a consistent run for Northern Districts in the 2015-16 Ford Trophy, New Zealand's domestic 50-over competition, in which he made 368 runs at an average of 52.57, including four half-centuries. He also represented Trinbago Knight Riders in the 2016 Caribbean Premier League in July-August.

"During the winter I went over to the CPL and played on slow wickets," Devcich said after arriving in Dharamsala. "That's the best preparation I could have had. Then I got home, did some conditioning work and technical work on spin indoors. I also played a couple of games down south, which was helpful.

"I managed to get in some outdoor training too, which is unheard of at that time of the year in New Zealand. With the different types of wickets we face over here, West Indies has similar climates and pitches. Just having that experience hopefully holds me in good stead."

Devcich, a top-order batsman who can bowl useful left-arm spin, is on his third trip to India. He first made a mark during New Zealand A's tour of India in August 2013. A year later, he turned up for Northern Knights in the now discontinued Champions League T20. Now, he's set to mark an ODI comeback after having last played an ODI in December 2014.

"I'm more mature now," he said when asked about what had changed in the time spent away from the national team. "I was trigger-happy back in the day when I played last. I left the team under injury, it's good to be back to see what the new culture is all about."

Twelve members of the Test squad have been retained for the ODIs in New Zealand's quest to register their first bilateral ODI series win in India. Devcich, who is one of the three additions - Corey Anderson and Tim Southee being the others - insisted New Zealand had learnt a lot from the experience of playing on tough surfaces.

"It was a tough series. It was very hot, and the conditions were testing," Devcich said. "Although we didn't pick up any victories, the boys got a lot of experience out of that. Hopefully the ODI wickets aren't as spinner-friendly, and we can post some good scores and bowl well on those wickets. If you look at the team, we've got two world-class batsmen, top 10 bowlers, new spinners and a couple of allrounders. Our team is balanced; hopefully we can upset India here.

"The confidence within the group is still high. There's no better place to come and test your skills. They're tough to beat here; they've got a big hold over world cricket at the moment, with the way they have played. If we can perform and do what we plan to, we can be very competitive."