No time to catch their breath: Mitchell Santner flags New Zealand's recovery concerns ahead of first ODI

New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner said on Tuesday that his players were feeling "a little jarred" ahead of the ODI series against India after a packed schedule that has seen the two teams play across all three formats in a little over a month.India and New Zealand are currently involved in a series comprising five T20Is, five ODIs and two Tests. The hosts lost the T20I series 2-3, with the first ODI scheduled to begin on Wednesday. The 50-over matches will also help New Zealand prepare for the 2027 World Cup, while the two-Test series, starting November 19, will be important for their chances of qualifying for the World Test Championship final.The T20I series was played across four venues and ended on November 1. India played their first match within 48 hours of arriving in Auckland, leaving little time for recovery after travel."It's a very quick turnaround. With the travel and the late finishes in T20 cricket, the guys are a little bit jarred today. Recovery is a massive part of the schedule at the moment," Santner said ahead of the first ODI.The New Zealand captain said the short gaps between matches made it difficult to field the same team throughout the series, even though teams would prefer to play their strongest available XI."With one-day cricket and quick turnarounds, it can be quite taxing. You want to play your best team all the time, but with the schedules these days and the quick turnarounds, it's pretty hard to do," he added.With the 2027 World Cup less than a year away, Santner also spoke about the possibility that it could be the last ODI tournament for several members of New Zealand's ageing squad, including him. The 34-year-old said the focus could shift towards T20 cricket after the tournament."Everyone's kind of 34 or 35. With one-day cricket being in the cycle, after this World Cup, the focus is going to shift again to T20 cricket, with the T20 World Cup being the next priority as well. So, yeah, I guess no one's told me anything yet, but it could be," said the 34-year-old.Santner said rotating players would be important during the series, particularly as New Zealand look to manage workloads across formats. He also pointed to the need to build depth by giving opportunities to other players."...it creates depth, and we've seen guys coming in and stepping up straight away," he said.He added that late finishes and dew during the T20I series had made recovery more important. With the ODIs scheduled to begin at 3pm local time, he expects dew to remain a factor towards the end of the second innings."With the dew, especially in the T20s, it was quite prominent, particularly in the second innings. With a 3pm (local time) start, it's probably going to be no different towards the back end of the second innings here around the country," he said.Santner said players would have to manage their recovery based on their individual needs, with training sessions sometimes giving way to rest."Guys just have to be on top of it. Whatever it looks like...So training might look like another recovery day rather than bowling a lot."Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.