Former Blackcaps bowler and cricket commentator Simon Doull is bewildered by New Zealand's selection decisions, after their clean-sweep series defeat to England.
The visitors were soundly beaten by seven wickets in the third and final test at Headingley, their fourth test defeat in a row, after losing to South Africa in their last outing of the home summer.
In particular, Doull has slammed the non-selection of spin-bowler Ajaz Patel, after he bowled just two overs in the first test at Lord's.
"I think the selection has probably been my biggest bugbear," he told Sky Sports UK.
"There's been some problems in and around selection at times with this whole trip, not using the spin well and not picking spin has been a problem.
"You're not trusting your batting - that's the problem. You've got to go in with at least four frontline bowlers, you cannot go in with three.
"I don't understand how you can walk into a test match with only three frontline bowlers, Daryl Mitchell and Michael Bracewell.
"It's just not good enough, it's really poor selection. You're covering holes where you think 'our batting is a little fragile at the top, so we'll pick an extra batter who can bowl', rather than picking a bowling side, when you have to win a test.
"You've got to get 20 wickets, that's the biggest issue. [Will] Young or [Henry] Nicholls should've been dropped, [Devon] Conway back to the top of the order, where he batted at Lord's last year, and Ajaz Patel should've played.
"I said it before the start of the test, it's not a hindsight thing - they got their selection wrong.
"Would it have changed, would they have won? Who knows, but it should have happened."
Doull knows the Blackcaps are hurting, but believes they only have themselves to blame for not taking their chances when they arose.
"They'll be disappointed, they'll be a little bit battered and beaten. They know that in all three test matches, they had opportunities.
"The [Colin] de Grandhomme no-ball… they were in a great position at Trent Bridge, they just let things slip a little bit.
"England took it away from them at times and here they took it away, those things can happen. They haven't won the crucial moments in all three test matches.
"They'll be bitterly disappointed, they came here with high hopes. They didn't have a great time at home, losing to Bangladesh, now they've lost another three on the bounce, that's four in a row, which will not please Kane Williamson.
"It won't please the New Zealand cricket fans."
