No balls frustrating but we are close to a solution: Simons

Hyderabad:

Dwelling on his wards on-and-off problem with no balls, India's bowling coach Eric Simons on Friday admitted that it was frustrating but said they are working on it and are almost close to a solution.

Referring to S Sreesanth's dismissal of Martin Guptill, which was rejected belatedly by on-field umpire Kumar Dharamasena after consulting the TV umpire as the bowler had overstepped, Simons said "it's a slow process but we are working on it."

Guptill then went on to score a valuable 85 off 160 balls.

"We have net sessions with bowlers who just works on no balls. Ishant (Sharma) had a major problem with no balls, and Sreesanth's wicket off a no-ball today was frustrating, Simons said after the first days play in the second Test between India and New Zealand here.

The South African was, however, satisfied with the overall performance of the bowlers on the first day of the match at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.

"I think there were a lot of good signs, though we should have had a few more wickets in the first session. We created chances," he said.

"We saw some reverse swing, and hopefully, our bowlers will exploit that."

Asked about off-spinner Harbhajan Singh's lean phase with ball as he failed to take a single wicket in the 27 overs he bowled today, Simons said, "It happens sometimes. He had two chances today - a tough catch and a very good lbw shout.

"He is working very hard but the most frustrating thing is that wickets are not coming."

Simons also refused to dwell too much on the wicket saying, "It's very difficult to comment on a wicket before the third or the fourth day of a Test match."

"I think the first half an hour tomorrow morning will be crucial," he added when asked about the team's plan for tomorrow.