New Zealand will face a formidable challenge from Britain’s battle-hardened skipper, Ben Ainslie, when they face off in the America’s Cup, according to the regatta director, Iain Murray.

As Ainslie took a day off the water to cheer the British entry in the first women’s America’s Cup, the New Zealand crew, skippered by Pete Burling, were out on the water making the most of the time allocated to them.

“The thing Ben has got up his sleeve is he’s such a match racer and he’s got a lot of match experience under his belt the Kiwis don’t,” Murray said. “You’ll see them practise as much as they possibly can.”

Ainslie and his crew beat Italy 7-4 on Friday in a closely contested Louis Vuitton Cup, securing the right to mount a British challenge for the America’s Cup for the first time in 60 years. The Auld Mug was first raced for off the south coast of England in 1851 and has never been won by Britain, something Ainslie has spent the past decade trying to remedy.

The 11 races Britain notched up against Italy, with the experience gained as a crew and the improvements made to their foiling AC75 boat, could give them an early jump, as was the case when the Italians challenged New Zealand in 2021.

“You’d have to say if you’re putting money on it the odds are that Ben will probably have an advantage at the start,” Murray said of the first-to-seven-wins America’s Cup that begins on 12 October.

Murray, who described Ainslie as an “unpredictable“, “ruthless” and “hard to handle” sailor, said the 47-year-old was a totally different person on the water.

“That’s all been part of his success over a very long period of time, so the Kiwis are going to have to handle and manage that,” said Murray, who has been involved in eight America’s Cup events, four as a competitor and four in race management.

Murray said the performances had shown the high-speed boats were “awesome” for head-to-head match racing, adding: “It’s back to fist fighting of the first degree”.