Photo: icc-cricket.com
A lot was expected as the two host nations locked horns at the Eden Park in Auckland for a Group A game. And they did not disappoint the spectators. It will go down in history books as one of the most exciting games that the world cup has ever experienced.
Australia won the toss and Michael Clarke did not hesitate to decide that they will bat first. Australia was off to a flier and in spite of losing Aaron Finch mid way through the powerplay, was in a very good position. Warner and Shane Watson were going great but as the wicket of Watson fell with the scorecard reading 80 on the board, the game turned on its head. Trent Boult came back into the attack for his second spell and simply ransacked the Australian batting line up. From 80/1, Australia went down to 106/9, five of those been picked up by Trent Boult. Brad Haddin (43) and Pat Cummins fought till the end and got something to fight for in the second innings.
Brendon McCullum and Martin Guptill gave New Zealand a perfect start to the run chase. McCullum scored his 50 in just 21 ball and his breathtaking innings had 3 sixes and 7 fours in it. But once Pat Cummins had him caught at mid-off New Zealand began to panic. Few quick wickets fell and the situation seemed to be getting tense. Mitchell Starc was bowling with real purpose and after picking up Taylor and Grant Elliott quickly halted New Zealand’s steady progress towards the finishing line. With very few runs needed and with the Kiwis in a good position, the match once again got interesting. Mitchell Starc came back for a final go and he did not disappoint his captain at all. It came down to the wire. Kane Williamson and Trent Boult were batting when New Zealand needed 6 runs and had only 1 wicket in hand. New Zealand ultimately won the match with Williamson hitting Cummins for a six but the fight back from Australia was simply unbelievable. Mitchell Starc finished with figures of 9-0-28-6. Although it came in a losing case, yet it deserved lots of praises.
Photo: icc-cricket.com
New Zealand with this win maintained their all win record in this edition of the cricket world cup. Australia, on the other hand, having lost this one and sharing points with Bangladesh, courtesy of a washed out match, sits now at the fourth position in the table. With few more matches to come in the group stage, both the teams really need to look at their batting. As told by Michael Clarke, their batting was simply horrendous while New Zealand’s batting was nervy. Not for the first time New Zealand batting looked vulnerable while chasing. Against Scotland also they had themselves in a spot of bother while chasing a paltry target of 120-odd runs. Overall, it was an exciting game of cricket that was played in an electrifying atmosphere and the victory of the game of cricket was written over it with bold letters.
Tags: Australia ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 ICC World Cup 2015 New Zealand
