Head groundsman Rupert Bool is preparing a typical Hagley Oval wicket for the first test.

After being blasted by Stephen Fleming on social media last summer, Hagley Oval head groundsman Rupert Bool is remaining true to his philosophy a pitch should be fair.

So not for him a green top suited to New Zealand or a spinner's delight favouring Pakistan.

That will come as a relief to both sets of coaches in the countdown to the first of the two-test series, starting in Christchurch next Thursday.

Former New Zealand captain Fleming criticised Bool on Twitter before February's test against Australia after he stated "we're not here to serve up a pitch to suit New Zealand".

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Fleming didn't see any reason why groundsmen shouldn't work with the home side to tailor pitches to their advantage with New Zealand regularly playing on dust bowls in the sub-continent which favour opposition spinners.

Bool said all first class groundsmen in the country liaised with New Zealand Cricket's general manager of grounds and facilities, Ian McKendry, and were given rough guidance, but not instructed what pitches to prepare.

"It's generally the same message of a good fair, cricket wicket. There's no real directive.

"It's up to the teams and the weather to help us out a bit."

Bool predicted a typical Hagley pitch, which would offer benefits for both batsmen and bowlers.

It should nip about and assist the seamers early on, but will flatten out and be a decent one to bat on as the test wears on.

In last week's Plunket Shield match between Canterbury and Central Districts at the venue, 24 wickets alarmingly fell to spin, but Bool didn't anticipate anything similar on a fresh strip prepared in the middle of the wicket block.

"It will be more traditional New Zealand conditions. [The last match at Hagley] was a bit of an anomaly for first class cricket. I don't think that will be likely to happen test match time."

He tipped the wicket to closely resemble the one used for the 2014 Boxing Day test between New Zealand and Sri Lanka, the first international match at the boutique ground.

"With the Australian test [in February], we had three 30 degree, very hot windy days, which sucked a lot of life out of the pitch very quickly.

"I don't expect that to happen in November. It's a really nice time of year to prepare a test wicket."

This will be the earliest Christchurch has hosted a test for the summer, with Lancaster Park staging December matches against Sri Lanka in 2006 and Pakistan [1995].

A November test presents its own set of challenges, notably Christchurch's temperamental spring weather.

Plenty of rain is forecast in the city over the next week, which will keep Bool and his ground staff extra busy.

Hagley has received rave reviews from both players and match officials during its short existence as an international ground.

It has been rewarded with 25 days of international cricket over the next two summers, including a much anticipated test against England in 2018.

Bool was proud of what he and his hard-working team had achieved. Only one Plunket Shield match hasn't produced a result since the ground was redeveloped in 2013.

He is quick to note how rapidly things can unravel, which is always in the back of the mind.

"Every game puts up new challenges. You're only one mistake away from having a real bad one and tarnishing the venue's reputation and something going wrong."

The 34-year-old is in his dream job as Hagley's chief curator.

He has two full-time ground staff in Ash Head and Steve Tsukigawa who he reckons "could run any ground in the country".