Bowlers must pretend they are Kiwi batsmen

The bounce at Old Trafford offers a particular challenge to bowlers but there's another one I'd like to see England's attack face up to over the next few days and it's a fundamental part of the game. To be a great bowler you have to learn how to think like a batsman when you're bowling to him. It's not a skill that can be coached and a bowler's ability to do it depends on his understanding of the game, but there were times at Lord's when I felt England's bowlers did not always place themselves in the batsman's shoes.

Put simply, a bowler can't afford only to think like a bowler. If, for example, you think that Brendon McCullum might come down the track, you must instinctively know what your plan is. Do you bang it in short or, because he exposes his leg stump, fire it in at leg? And if he does nick it for four, do you carry on with your plan because you know it might bring a wicket even if it costs runs?

This is the point where a bowler must try to think what is going through McCullum's mind: 'He knows he was lucky there, so I'll try the same thing again.' I know it's not always as straightforward as that because runs might be at a premium and the batsman might be reading your intentions too, but it's vital to have that understanding of the game and that flexibility to adapt.

In the second innings at Lord's when Jacob Oram was batting, it was a different kind of challenge. In that instance England just needed to stick to their plans a bit more because I still feel they don't get the ball in the right areas often enough. They do it for periods and then try to get too smart or maybe they get bored or lose concentration. You must always try to read the batsman's body language and do the thing he doesn't want. If you were in his position, what would you be thinking? How would you react to the situation? Does he have to take risks? It's not an easy skill to develop but it's a crucial one.

I always felt that Darren Gough read a situation better than anyone. He was a very clever bowler with a lovely action he could change at the last minute. Some bowlers, like Andy Caddick, have more mechanical actions that make it difficult to change their length but I get the impression Ryan Sidebottom does not have that problem. For Jimmy Anderson it might be more difficult because his action is very whippy and fast, which makes late change tricky. I reckon if he tried to change his action at the last second, maybe three balls out of six would be in the right area. With Sidebottom, the figure would probably be five.

In Manchester, they will have to adapt again. The bounce means the natural length is slightly fuller than at Lord's, but you mustn't get carried away with it. The selectors have chosen not to go with Steve Harmison, who was successful in my last Test as England coach at Old Trafford against Pakistan in 2006, but I can understand why they made their decision. They have given him a clear message that he has to produce consistently good results for Durham to get back in. Everything's down to Harmison now. No one else can help him.

It will be very interesting to see how Stuart Broad goes because he's tall and hits the deck. I'd like to see him maintain his pace. I watched the speedgun in the second innings at Lord's and he was down to 80-85mph at times, whereas in the first he'd been up around 85-90mph. Why was that? If your pace goes, you risk losing the bounce.

Monty Panesar and Daniel Vettori might come into play too, especially if the pitch has some cracks in it like against Pakistan. It ends up looking like a mosaic and if the ball hits the edge of one of the mosaic pieces, it can turn and bounce unpredictably. But if it hits the middle of one of them, it shoots through straight like an arm-ball, so it's vital that batsmen get right forward to the pitch. New Zealand's batsmen may struggle if the pitch is fast but if it begins dry then their accurate bowlers could enjoy themselves too.