Blackcaps batter Glenn Phillips insists there was no issue with the commentary broadcast in his ear during Friday's heavy defeat T20 international defeat to Australia, despite appearing flustered while he was at the crease by what appeared to be some poorly timed interjections.
After being introduced by TVNZ commentator Scotty Stevenson, mic'ed-up Phillips promptly asked for a "small favour" - requesting silence so he could focus on his next delivery from Adam Zampa, as the Blackcaps chased the 175-run target set for victory at Eden Park.
"Just while I'm facing because I can hear you all at the same time," Phillips pointed out.
"Between balls you can talk."
Phillips dispatched the following ball from the Aussie spinner for six, going on to make a team-high 42 off 35 in one of the few bright notes of New Zealand's crushing 72-run loss, which secured the series and the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy for the tourists.
Speaking after the game, Phillips clarified he was simply taking measures to prevent any inopportune comments in his ear while he was trying to concentrate on the next delivery.
"I started actually scoring runs when they started talking to me, so maybe I need to actually have them in more often," Phillips joked.
"At the end of the day, it's an entertainment piece and as a player, I feel like I always have the option to say no, if I don't want to do a certain thing, like using the mic when I'm batting.
"I was perfectly fine."
Phillips' outgoing nature and effervescent personality has made him a favourite of broadcasters seeking candidates to wear the on-field microphones.
"Other guys always have the right to say no. I think today was actually a lot of fun and a great piece of entertainment," he added.
Zampa eventually had the last laugh, enticing Phillips into a miscue to send him to the pavilion, extinguishing any faint hope of victory for the Blackcaps.
The result consigns Sunday's third match at the same venue to a dead rubber, meaning it's unlikely the Blackcaps will risk using the hobbled Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra.
Ravindra was scratched shortly before the game due to knee soreness while Conway departed in just the second over of the match, after suffering a blow to his hand trying to reel in a stray Adam Milne delivery.
He was treated on the field before handing the gloves over to Finn Allen. He was later spotted padded up ready to bat but given the lopsided nature of the match, was withheld from taking to the crease.
After undergoing X-rays, Conway was later cleared of any fracture.
"All I know it was pretty swollen and it wasn't worth going out there at that point of time," said Phillips.
"We were four down for not much and who knows Devon could have been one of those wickets," he said.
"But obviously he's an integral part of our batting line up and he always gives a lot of confidence to the guys that are behind him.
"It was a big loss but at the end of the day wickets fell regardless."
The Blackcaps will be sweating on the availability of both players for the upcoming test series, which begins on Friday.
