Dubai: Skipper Kane Williamson (85, 48b, 10×4, 3×6) led from the front as New Zealand posted 172 for the loss of four wickets in the T20 World Cup final being played here Sunday after being put in by Australian captain Aaron Finch.
No doubt that the task for Australia will be cut out as this is the highest-ever total posted in the final of the T20 World Cup. For Australia, speedster Josh Hazlewood (3/16) was the pick of the bowlers. He was well-supported by leg-spinner Adam Zampa (1/26), but main pace spearhead Mitchell Starc turned out to be a huge disappointment going for 60 runs in his four overs.
In hindsight, if Australia lose the game, then Starc’s bowling will surely come in for criticism.
The pitch doesn’t have any demons, so it should not be difficult for their batters to chase down what appears to be a challenging total, but not an insurmountable one. They have the batting to tackle the New Zealand attack where leg-spinner Ish Sodhi will have to play an important role if they are to win.
However, the focal point will no doubt be the innings played by the Kiwi skipper. He once again showed that T20 cricket is not just about brutal hitting or innovative shots. Williamson played most of the shots in the cricket manual to take apart the Aussie bowling. He was finally caught in the deep by Steve Smith off Hazlewood has he tried to up the ante.
If his cover drives and shots square off the wicket were pleasing to the eyes, so also was his flicks to the leg-side when he brought into play some beautiful wristwork.
Williamson was involved in two crucial partnerships. First, he added 48 runs for the second wicket with Martin Guptill (28, 35b, 3×4) for the second wicket after New Zealand had lost the in-form Daryl Mitchell (11) who was caught behind by Matthew Wade off Hazlewood. Then Williamson and Glen Phillips (18, 17b, 1×4, 1×6) put on 68 runs for the third wicket to give the New Zealand innings some impetus.
It was the 16th over of the Kiwi innings that finally provided the launch pad for attack as Williamson took Starc to the cleaners scoring 22 runs. The Kiwi skipper hit the Aussie speedster for four boundaries and a six as Starc looked completely bewildered.
Thankfully, Hazlewood stopped the mayhem, otherwise who knows how many more runs New Zealand would have scored. In the end, Jimmy Neesham (13 n o) and Tim Seifert (eight n o) put on some quick runs to take the Kiwi total past the 170-mark. They would have scored a few more, had Guptill not been unusually quiet at the top of the order. Usually a free-flowing batsman, Guptill was always struggling for lack of timing.
Brief scores: New Zealand 172 for 4 (Kane Williamson 85, Josh Hazlehood 3/16). Match to continue.
Captions
Kane Williamson
Australian players congratulate Josh Hazlewood after the dismissal of Glenn Phillips PTI Photos