Only two Tests are on the schedule, instead of the customary three, with the focus of the Pakistan tour more on the six One-day Internationals to follow as a warm to the World Cup.
But New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori said the teams needed to make the most of their limited Test time as their current world rankings — Pakistan are sixth and New Zealand eighth — show a need for improvement.
Pakistan, however, are without opener Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir who are facing a six-day Independent Anti-Corruption Tribunal hearing starting in Doha on Thursday.
The three face charges of spot-fixing during Pakistan’s tour of England last year.
With batsman Mohammad Yousuf left out of the touring squad, the pressure will be on captain Misbah-ul-Haq along with Younis Khan and Azhar Ali to provide the backbone of their batting.
Umar Gul and Wahab Riaz will spearhead the bowling while Abdur Rehman is the only spin option after Saeed Ajmal returned home following the sudden death of his father on Tuesday.
Pakistan enter the first Test here on the back of a 1-2 loss to New Zealand in a Twenty20 series. Importantly at Test level they drew a two-match series against South Africa 0-0 in November.
New Zealand in the same month were beaten 1-0 by India in a three-Test series.
“We competed in India because we scored big first innings runs and were able to stay in the game, so that’s our first goal, and bring as much penetration as we can with the ball,” said Vettori, whose side has a more settled look than Pakistan.
Opening batsman Brendon McCullum, who scored 206 for a New Zealand XI against Pakistan earlier in the week, said he was in tune with the philosophy of new coach John Wright that the batsmen lay the foundation.
“Individually each batsman has got to be accountable for their own game and make sure their performances stack up. That’s where my focus is,” McCullum said.
“We’ve got some quite brilliant strokemakers in our lineup. Given the right conditions to express their talent they’re as good as anyone in the world.”
The weather in Hamilton over the past week has been hot with high humidity indicating it will offer swing and should favour the bowlers in the opening sessions.
Test squads:
Pakistan: Misbah-ul-Haq (captain), Mohammad Hafeez, Taufeeq Umar, Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Asad Shafiq, Umar Akmal, Adnan Akmal, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Umar Gul, Tanvir Ahmed, Sohail Tanvir, Wahab Riaz.
New Zealand: Daniel Vettori (captain), Brendon McCullum, Tim McIntosh, Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor, Jesse Ryder, Kane Williamson, Reece Young, Tim Southee, Brent Arnel, Chris Martin, James Franklin, Daryl Tuffey.
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