'You can't replace a Bond or a Cairns'

Stephen Fleming was mobbed so hard by the media on arrival at the Chennai airport that he decided to call a press conference first thing on Monday morning at the team hotel. Along with Ashley Ross, the coach, and Nathan Astle, the star batsman of the side, he spoke about the importance of planning and the challenges of playing in India. As usual, though, it was the articulate Fleming who spoke for the team.

The difficulty of playing in India is something that has come under scrutiny recently, and Fleming underscored this point. "Playing India in India is a greater challenge than Australia in Australia because you have to make adjustments on and off the field. Australia is very similar to New Zealand in terms of lifestyle. The greatest challenge in India is to adapt to nature off the field, to the culture changes we have to live with - don't get me wrong about it, we are all very excited. I think it's one of most marvelous tours you can go on. The cricket on the field is only a part of it."

"The greatest challenge in India is also to keep the crowd quiet. If we do that, we know we're doing well. I've played in games here where the atmosphere has been absolutely electric. When the likes of Tendulkar and Ganguly are doing well, the crowds really appreciate it. But we are also appreciated as players. The crowds are very knowledgable about their cricket and coming from a rugby nation we find it very refreshing."

India's heavy loss to New Zealand when they toured last has prompted talk of a revenge series. Fleming, though, will have none of it. "It's not a confrontation between captains. I respect Sourav's ability as a leader and as a player. It's not a revenge match up between the two captain. There are a lot of good players in the Indian side that we need to focus on as well."

Ross's early arrival in India has already helped the team. "We woke up at 3.30 this morning and watched a bit of the Irani trophy match on TV. We were pretty impressed with some of the things we saw. The coach has illustrated that pretty clearly but we are a prepared side. We pride ourselves on that. When you go up against the best, you have to prepare yourself a little bit harder and a little bit better."

He adds that the home series was a vital experience for the New Zealand team too. "It was a pretty humbling experiece for a lot of quality batsmen, some of the best batsmen in world cricket. We have come to India with the expectation that the wickets here will be dry and take turn."

Fleming conceded that the series is going to be a tough one. "India has always been a very proud side at home. With a billion people who love cricket, it's understandable. But what we do bring is a group of young players who have experience in the subcontinent. We have come off a tour of Sri Lanka that we are pleased with. We have developed since then under Ashley [Ross] and the management staff. So we come to India with high expectations but are also realistic about what it's going to take to win a series here."

The absence of Shane Bond and Chris Cairns will make things tougher for Fleming. "You can't replace a Bond or a Cairns but what we can do is create some opportunities. There are some young players in this side who can take those opportunities, and make a name for themselves in the toughest conditions in which they'll play. They are very excited about it, and it will make us a better side when Bond returns and Cairns joins this team later in the tour."