Rex Clementine
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9th Match: India v New Zealand at Colombo, 2 Aug 2001 Rex Clementine |
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India innings:
Pre-game: New Zealand innings: |
Incidentally his was the sixth fastest hundred in One Day Internationals.
New Zealand could have seen the back of the batsman if Adam Parore behind the stumps had not missed a stumping chance off Daniel Vettori.
However, soon after the batsman made his hundred, Craig McMillan replacing Nathan Astle from the Tennis Court End sent back the batsman. He was bowled off an inside edge with India well placed on 143.
McMillan started causing problems for the Indians as he bowled VVS Laxman for a duck. India were 146 for two at that stage.
Skipper Ganguly reached his fifty when he drove Nathan Astle for a boundary through extra cover. The fifty came in 85 balls and 119 minutes with six boundaries.
India at the end of the 30th over were well set at 162 for two with the two most experienced batsmen Rahul Dravid and Ganguly at the crease. Ganguly is on 55 and Dravid is on three.
India started cautiously in the first five overs where they scored only 19 runs, following which Shewag lifted the tempo from.
In the sixth over, bowled by Kyle Mills the right-hander smashed 16 runs all of which were scored in boundaries. The first was a cover drive, the second a cut, the third a flick through the midwicket and the last an edge past the wicketkeeper Adam Parore.
After that over from Mills, skipper Stephen Fleming introduced Dion Nash, but he too proved costly as he went for 11 runs.
India’s 50 came as early as the ninth over of the match, in just 35 minutes. Shewag’s contribution was 44 while Ganguly’s added a mere seven. Immediately after the team’s 50 Shewag reached his half century with a boundary over the head of point. The half-century came in just 29 balls with 12 boundaries.
Even after reaching his half century Shewag continued with his aggressive style of batting in pursuit of the highest total of the tournament.
The right hander forced Stephen Fleming to take off his opening bowler Darryl Tuffey, as he hit 22 runs off his sixth over with four boundaries and a six.
The pair brought up the 100 run partnership in the 14th over of the match. Shewag hit 80 of those runs while Ganguly’s contribution was a mere 20.
Opener Nathan Astle’s 11th century and some big hitting towards the end of the innings by Lou Vincent helped New Zealand post the highest score of the tournament as they scored a mammoth 264, in the last round robin match of the Coca Cola Cup at the Sinhalese Sports Club Grounds, Colombo.
The New Zealand score was built around two partnerships. One of them was between Skipper Stephen Fleming and Nathan Astle, the pair put up 138 runs for the second wicket in 173 balls.
Fleming, who joined Astle at the fall of Matthew Sinclair reached his 50 in 76 balls and 96 minutes.
New Zealand’s 150 came in the 35th over of the match in 143 minutes. The CLEAR Black Caps took just 52 deliveries to record the third fifty of their innings.
Yuvraj Singh, the man of the match of match of yesterday’s game hogged the limelight in this game too, this time with the ball. In his fifth over, from the Tennis Court End, the left-armer sent back skipper Fleming, stumped by Sameer Dighe. The southpaw jumped out to smash the bowler but missed the delivery which kept a bit low. Fleming made 66, in 14 minutes and 91 balls hitting seven boundaries.
Yuvraj also sent back Craig McMillan for four. The batsman trying to play the reverse sweep too early of his innings was easily caught by Reetinder Sodhi at backward of point.
New Zealand’s 200 was recorded in the 43rd over in 177 minutes. They had just taken 50 balls to record their fourth fifty. The fifth 50 that’s the 250, came in even quick time as it took them just 32 balls.
New Zealand opener Nathan Astle reached his second century of the Tournament when he pushed Zaheer Khan for a single to extra cover. The 100 came in 138 balls and 193 minutes with eight boundaries. No other batsmen has scored a century in this series so far. The hundred was his 11th of the career. His innings ended when he offered Virender Shewag a catch at deep extra cover going for a big hit off Ashish Nehra. He made 108 with nine boundaries.
Dion Nash promoted in the order to go for some big shots was dismissed for a duck. He went for a big one and was caught by Ashish Nehra off Zaheer Khan. Lou Vincent, who made an entertaining 45 in 37 balls and 44 minutes with three boundaries and the only six of the match so far, departed when Nehra clean bowled him.
In the very next ball Nehra trapped Adam Parore leg before for a duck. Nehra ended up with the figures of three for 30. Zaheer Khan and Yuvraj Singh too picked up two wickets each.
Fleming and Astle scored their runs mainly through some sharp running between the wickets. When a loose ball was on offer the Kiwi duo took full toll.
Nathan Astle who has already scored a hundred against India and a fifty against Sri Lanka looked solid with an unbeaten 52. His 50 came in 87 balls and 123 minutes with four boundaries. His partner, captain Stephen Fleming was on 45 with New Zealand on 122 for one at the end of the 30th over.
The pair brought up their 50 run partnership for the second wicket in 79 balls and 56 minutes with Astle on 39 and Fleming on 17.
Even Harbhajan Singh who has got nine wickets in five matches so far and has constantly troubled the New Zealand batsmen failed to provide with the breakthrough. In Singh’s first spell where he bowled six overs he gave away 21 runs. New Zealand’s 100 runs came in the 26th over in 111 minutes.
By the fifth over they only scored 14 runs but more importantly they didn’t lose any wickets.
In the seventh over of the morning, Nathan Astle brought some life to the match by smashing Zaheer Khan for 11 runs. The right-hander hit two exquisite boundaries, one a straight drive and the other a flick to the midwicket boundary.
Zaheer, however, came back in the next over to get rid of Sinclair. The batsman pulled at a good length delivery straight into the hands of Hemang Badani at midwicket. He made just three and New Zealand were 28 for one.
At the crease for the for the Black Caps are Nathan Astle on 30 and skipper Stephan Fleming on six. The Indians have given away 16 extras in the first 15 overs.
The Kiwis have brought in middle order batsmen Lou Vincent for this game in place of all rounder Jacob Oram. The Indians meanwhile have retained the team squad which beat Sri Lanka in the last game at the same venue.
Sri Lanka are already through to the final with eight points. This game is crucial for both the sides since the side recording a victory will go through to the final. In other words, this is a virtual semi-final clash. So far, both India and New Zealand have got four points in five matches.
Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly was fined 75 percent of his match fee by match referee Cammie Smith for bringing the game into disrepute. This follows an incident in yesterday’s game against Sri Lanka where Ganguly and Lankan batsman Russel Arnold were involved in an exchange of words following the dismissal of the latter.
Teams: New Zealand: MS Sinclair, NJ Astle, L Vincent, *SP Fleming, CD McMillan, DJ Nash, CZ Harris, +AC Parore, DL Vettori, KD Mills, DR Tuffey.
India: V Shewag, *SC Ganguly, VVS Laxman, R Dravid, HK Badani, Yuvraj Singh, RS Sodhi, +SS Dighe, Harbhajan Singh, Z Khan, A Nehra
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Date-stamped : 02 Aug2001 - 18:25