Australia all out for 151
Well, it was a disaster for the Aussies in the end. They started well through Warner (34), Finch (14) and Watson (23), who all got starts and had the Aussies at 80-1 in the thirteenth over but upon the introduction of Dan Vettori’s wily spin, Trent Boult cut a swathe through the middle order and at one point had 5-1 in a phenomenal spell.
Watson fell ingloriously to Vettori, holing out in the deep and the spinner claimed Steve Smith too, but the rest of the recognised batsmen just crumbled against Boult’s pacey swing. Clarke, Maxwell, Marsh, Johnson and Starc all fell to him within the blink of an eye as Australia lost 8-26. Only that 45-run last-wicket stand between Brad Haddin (43) and Pat Cummins mitigated a disaster worse than that suffered by England at the hands of the same attack.
The Aussies aren’t without a chance here, of course, but it’ll be some effort to match Boult’s heroics. Can either of the Mitchell’s pull it off? Can Pat Cummins? Will Shane Watson step up with the ball? We know that Brendan McCullum will attack them from ball one so either way, there’ll be action aplenty early in the Kiwi chase, which will be coming to you very shortly.
WICKET! Haddin c McCullum b Anderson 43 - Australia all out for 151 from 32.2 overs
This 10-wicket partnership had brought a handy 45 runs as Brad Haddin slapped Corey Anderson’s first delivery over the bowlers’ head for six but Anderson’s arrival turned out for the best from a Kiwi perspective when he nipped the Australian innings in the bud from the very next delivery, which Haddin squirts into the hands of McCullum at a deepish gully.
After being 80-1 at one point, the Aussies have been bowled out for 151 thanks to a phenomenal spell of fast bowling from Trent Boult.
32nd over: Australia 145-9 (Haddin 37, Cummins 7)
The time for trust is back upon us, it seems. With Cummins faring well against Southee the over before, Brad Haddin now elects to take the single from Milne’s first ball and let his teammate face the music. Cummins drives a fast full toss towards Guptill at backward point but even as his side is well on top, the Kiwi fieldsman throws himself into a diving save like his life depends on it.
Roman Ondrus is a trooper and writes in from Eastern Europe. “It is 4 AM here and I suspect I am the only person in the radius of 1000 km (that’s around million miles, if I am correct) following the game. We don’t really see that well into the world of cricket over here, but watching these games makes us wonder whether the ICC isn’t right about the associates and the world cup. I don’t think teams playing matches like Afghanistan vs Scotland should be forced to have the tournament spoiled by games like this one. It just doesn’t seem fair.”
31st over: Australia 144-9 (Haddin 36, Cummins 7)
Maybe Haddin should trust Cummins. “He’s certainly not a number eleven,” says Brett Lee as the Aussie paceman gets forward to Southee and crunches a splendid on drive for four through the vacant mid-on region. A great quirk of this sensational Kiwi bowling performance is that Southee - the leader of their attack - has gone at 8 an over.
We’ll take drinks now, preferably something strong.
Australia scrape past Scotland's effort against New Zealand. That's one very relieved Dave Richardson
— Tim (@timwig_cricket) February 28, 2015
30th over: Australia 140-9 (Haddin 36, Cummins 3)
The commentators and the crowd don’t like it, but Haddin refuses another single from the second delivery of Milne’s over and I think he’s well within his rights there. He thinks he can use Milne’s pace to pick up a few more boundaries but he’s not given much to work with until the final delivery, which he spears through cover for four.
More than England, yes, but still 140 short of Ireland's lowest score. #cwc2015
— Greg Baum (@GregBaum) February 28, 2015
Look, if your No. 11 can't bat out 22 overs with a flaky wicketkeeping slogger, you don't deserve to win a World Cup. #CWC15 #NZvAUS
— Geoff Lemon Sport (@GeoffLemonSport) February 28, 2015
29th over: Australia 136-9 (Haddin 32, Cummins 3)
Brad Haddin’s picking up the pieces here. He can’t be expected to glue them all back together but boundaries like the one he flicks to third man off Southee can only help. He also does the right thing by Cummins, refusing an easy single off the final ball so that the youngster doesn’t have to face up to Milne. Most of us have skid-marks from watching Milne, let along facing up to him in the flesh.
Rudi Edsall is spewing. “Am I alone in thinking this collapse would have been less likely if Smith had been able to stay at four and Bailey at five?” he asks. “I feel Clarke coming back has unnecessarily unsettled our batting lineup. Also Watson shouldn’t escape culpability - that shot was terrible for a man who was in.”
I don’t think we can blame this performance on Clarke alone but Watson was certainly culpable.
28th over: Australia 129-9 (Haddin 22, Cummins 4)
Oh yeah, the Kiwis have also had Adam Milne waiting in the wings. Hasn’t bowled an over. Lets ‘em go at 150 clicks, does Adam. Haddin barely sees the first one as it whistles past his off stump. 151.5 kmph, in fact. The local crowd are egging Milne on. They want it up around 160. They probably want blood, too.
Just for a complete novelty, the Kiwis also do something wrong in this over, conceding an overthrow. Pat Cummins probably isn’t rapt with that as it means he has to face up to Milne’s lightning pace for two deliveries. The first one’s outside off stump and Cummins tries to belt it through cover but has a fresh-air shot, the second is a yorker he does well to defend. This might not last much longer.
27th over: Australia 128-9 (Haddin 21, Cummins 4)
Remember Tim Southee? With Vettori and Boult’s overs done and dusted, the appearance of England’s destroyer counts as a relief today. That tells you how disastrous this has been for Australia Haddin drives him only metres short of the man at mid off and also pulls him for two but there’s a sense that it’s only a matter of time before the Aussies will be out there with the ball.
Brendan Jones is muckraking already. “Given this surprisingly shambolic performance from Australia so far,” he says, “how long will it be before speculation takes off that Clarke’s return to the side means an unhappy dressing room?”
How about his decision to bat?
@rustyjacko A question of etiquette: are Aussies permitted to cancel lunch plans with Kiwis today? Asking for a friend. #AusvNZ
— sarah jane bacon (@sportzzzgirl) February 28, 2015
26th over: Australia 124-9 (Haddin 21, Cummins 3)
This has been Trent Boult’s greatest moment in ODIs so far and it’s also his first 5-fer in limited overs internationals. His last over here is of impeccable line and length and he goes within a whisker of taking Pat Cummins’ leg stump with his final delivery, but finishes with 5-27 off his 10. What a bowler, what a spell.
“Oh god how I would love to be hearing those channel nine commentators now,” says Kiwi reader Michael Gormley. They’re not loving it Mike, I won’t lie to you.
25th over: Australia 124-9 (Haddin 21, Cummins 3)
Brad Haddin’s best form of defence is attack and he decides to take it to Dan Vettori here, bashing him for four just over the head of mid-on and then launching a straight six over the short boundary down the ground. That ruins Vettori’s figures a little but 2-41 off 10 ain’t bad. His ceaseless pressure was the underrated factor in Boult’s carnage at the other end.
24th over: Australia 111-9 (Haddin 9, Cummins 2)
Is there any hope that Johnson, Starc and Cummins can replicate this kind of bowling destruction? I guess so, but they’d be doing well to match Trent Boult today. A bizarre thing happens this over: Boult doesn’t take a wicket. How dare he! He does finish it with an LBW shout against Haddin but he’s getting no love from the Umpire. Maybe that was a pity call.
Australia's lowest completed World Cup total 129 in 1983, but they have lapped lowest score against NZ which was 70. Take that!
— Peter Lalor (@plalor) February 28, 2015
I'm fervently hoping New Zealand are going to win in 12.1 overs
— Simon Wilde (@swildecricket) February 28, 2015
McCullum will get these before breakfast. #cwc2015
— Greg Baum (@GregBaum) February 28, 2015
23rd over: Australia 108-9 (Haddin 8, Cummins 1)
I have no idea what happened in that Vettori over. I’m still trying to pick myself up off the floor. Pat Cummins is in. Deal with this mess, Pat.
Chant goes up: 'you're worse than England'. Safe to describe this as extraordinary scenes here..
— Mark Geenty (@mark_geenty) February 28, 2015
WICKET! Mitchell Starc b Boult 0 (Australia 106-9)
Boult’s got five wickets! It’s a rout! The Kiwi left-armer is fast and straight to a confused Mitchell Starc and the Aussie - no mug with the bat - has had his middle stump unceremoniously cartwheeled. This is a stunning display of cricket from Boult and the Kiwis. They’re annihiliating the Uassies.
Australia has lost 8-26 in 9 overs. Boult’s taken 5-1 in this spell. This is just insane. Cricket on drugs. Drunk cricket. Joy. Despair. Everything else in between. Get near a TV and drink it all in. Get high on New Zealand’s supply.
Updated
WICKET! Johnson c Williamson b Boult 1 (Australia 106-8)
It’s a little hard to keep up with all of these wickets but now Johnson is gone, creating Australia’s second set of bookend dismissals. Maxwell and Marsh chopped on, now Clarke and Johnson have both bunted drives straight into the hands of Kane Williamson at cover, both off them off the bowling of Trent Boult. The Aussies are cooked.
“I cannot believe it,” says Mark Waugh. Believe it, Junior, the Kiwis are the real deal.
21st over: Australia 106-7 (Haddin 6, Johnson 1)
Mitch Johnson is the new man at the crease and you can bet your bottom dollar that he wasn’t expecting to be batting in the 21st over of the game. Is it time to start talking about Clarke’s decision to bat again? I think it might be.
WICKET! Clarke c Williamson b Boult 12 (Australia 104-7)
Trent Boult’s seventh over started in unusual circumstances when Brad Haddin - disrupted by some kind of insect - pulled away right as the bowler hit the crescendo of his bowling stride.
Maybe Michael Clarke should have done the same before he planted his front foot and drove straight into the hands of Kane Williamson at short cover. This is absurd. Australia are falling apart at the seams and now their skipper is gone.
“Australia getting a wake up call that should keep them up for 3 days,” notes Disco Bob via email.
19th over: Australia 103-6 (Clarke 12, Haddin 5)
Michael Clarke looks like a man barely-concealing his rage right now. He gets off strike and allows Haddin to get off the mark with a leg-glanced four and even manages a wry laugh but he must be steaming inside. The hundred is now up for Australia but the scoreboard is far from respectable at the moment. Can these two dig in and haul their side out of this crisis?
18th over: Australia 97-6 (Clarke 11, Haddin 0)
Aussie keeper Brad Haddin is the new man at the crease and probably a comforting sight to his skipper Michael Clarke. Boult is immediately attacking his stumps with a yorker but Haddin survives an over that’s brought about complete mayhem.
WICKET! Marsh b Boult 0 (Australia 97-6)
This is just getting ridiculous now. Figuring his approach to Maxwell reaped gold, Boult bangs another on in short and though Mitchell Marsh isn’t attacking like his recently-departing colleague, he dangles his bat at it rather indescriminately and departs in the exact same manner, chopping it back onto his stumps. Australia is on the verge of total obliteration.
Remember when we were worried that the associate nation games wouldn’t be competitive? Good times, they were.
Updated
WICKET! Maxwell b Boult 1 (Australia 96-5)
This is just a debacle now for the Aussies. Boult returns for another bowl and though his second ball is nothing particularly special - short outside off-stump and thus well within Glenn Maxwell’s hitting zone - the Australian chops his cut shot back onto his own stumps and departs as quickly as he arrived. Half an hour ago the Aussies were running riot but now their innings is in tatters.
17th over: Australia 96-4 (Clarke 11, Maxwell 1)
New man Glenn Maxwell gets off the mark with a single but Vettori has 2-17 off 6 overs now and McCullum must surely be considering taking a punt and keeping him on in the hope of running through a few more Aussies. Everything he touches today turns to gold.
WICKET! Smith c Ronchi b Vettori 4 (Australia 95-4)
Vettori strikes again! This time he gets Smith shuffling back and cutting with a slightly diagonal bat, which means he sends a thick edge though to the safe hands of Ronchi behind the wicket. It was a super catch, actually. This is disastrous for Australia - their middle order is crumbling.
16th over: Australia 94-3 (Clarke 10, Smith 4)
Tim Southee was all over the place in his opening overs but he’s right back in the game with that Warner wicket and looking like his old self again.
Conversely, Michael Clarke has been something of an unknown quantity heading into this game - as a batsman at least - but he starts beautifully here, closing the face of the bat and timing the living daylights out of an on-drive to the deep mid-wicket boundary. What a beautiful and clasical stroke that was.
With that, we’ll pause briefly for a rinks break.
15th over: Australia 87-3 (Clarke 3, Smith 4)
“The noise is deafening”, says Brett Lee of the atmosphere inside the stadium today. The images suggest a well-mannered crowd but I guess we’ll take Bing’s word for it. Daniel Vettori continues and draws both a thick edge from Clarke and some unconvincing footwork from Steve Smith too.
14th over: Australia 85-3 (Clarke 2, Smith 3)
With Steve Smith at the crease, Southee has three slips in place now and the Kiwis are swarming the Australian pair. If Smith is feeling any pressure he doesn’t show it when he plants a decisive foot forward and plays an attractive and late cover drive for two. Clarke gets off the mark with two of his own and what a time to be making your return to the big-time; with a huge rebuilding task in front of you and your opposition running rampant.
WICKET! Warner lbw Southee 34 (Australia 80-3)
Now Southee strikes! Warner is gone from the very next delivery after the loss of Watson! Warner shuffles across in non-commital style and gets trapped dead in front by the Kiwi paceman. He immediately reviews the call but it’s thrown back to the central umpire and he has to go. A double-strike for the Kiwis - sensational stuff! Australia are in big trouble here with two new batsmen at the crease.
Updated
WICKET! Watson c Southee b Vettori 23
13th over: Australia 80-2 (Warner 34)
For the opening five balls of this over, the Australia pair continued their watchful vigil against the spin of Vettori. Then - as I’d mentioned only an over ago - Watson perishes just when he’d started looking comfortable. Vettori drops a little short and Watson swivels to pull but sends it straight into the hands of a tumbling Tim Southee at deep mid-wicket.
That was a shocking shot from Watson, he just helped it on its way to the man in the deep. He’s furious and well he might be. The Kiwis are right in this.
12th over: Australia 76-1 (Warner 32, Watson 21)
With the tone of the game shifting back into net neutrality for the Kiwis, McCullum makes the not-unreasonable call to reintroduce Southee and get his star bowler back in the game. That’s good in theory, but Southee starts with another huge wide outside Shane Watson’s off-stump and is very fortunate that the follow-up doesn’t get the same treatment from Umpire Marais Erasmus.
The next ball is driven out to the long-off boundary and would have gone for four if not for the Kiwi skipper’s magnificent chase and sliding save at the rope. Watson also dabs one down to third man and he’s looking a lot more comfortable now but you wonder, given his recent vulnerabilities once he’s reached the 20-30 run stage, how he’s going to proceed from here. It’s certainly a sub-plot to watch because he’d be desperate for runs here.
11th over: Australia 70-1 (Warner 31, Watson 15)
“Michael Beer in Australia, he’s very similar to him,” is Shane Warne’s assessment of Daniel Vettori’s accurate spin here. Damning him with faint praise a little, Shano? Warner and Watson both manage a single here but it’s another tight over from the Kiwi champion.
10th over: Australia 68-1 (Warner 31, Watson 15)
Boult is bowling some superb deliveries here - still moving it away from Warner at a trajectory you’d go as far as to label “hooping swing”. Warner drives to cover for one but not after a nervous moment in which he goes close to edging behind. Boult continues to target Watson’s front pad but his last ball makes it a little easy for the struggling Aussie; it’s short down the leg side and gets hoofed around the corner for a boundary wide of fine leg. Watson will hope he gets a few more of those freebies to get going. He’s 15 off 19 now.
Warner dropped by Trent Boult
9th over: Australia 62-1 (Warner 30, Watson 10)
Vettori is wily and accurate again but the over springs to life at the fifth delivery, to which Warner steps back and across, cutting uppishly in the direction of Trent Boult at backward point. The Kiwi paceman moves around smartly and dives at something close to full stretch but the ball squeezes through his outstretched right hand and falls to the turf. It was a tough chance but he might have held it.
8th over: Australia 57-1 (Warner 27, Watson 8)
Watson’s looked as rusty as you’d expect for a man in the lean form he’s suffering and first ball of this over from Boult he can’t quite latch onto an ambitious pull, nor a cover drive to a ball that was probably too short to deal with in such a manner. Turning the strike might be his go early on.
With Watson off strike, a calm and still Warner drives handsomely for two and then under-edges to the cordon to finish the over. They’ve slowed a little in the last two overs, but the Aussies are still cracking on at a healthy run rate of 7.12.
7th over: Australia 53-1 (Warner 25, Watson 7)
Mindful of Southee’s waywardness and the need to halt Warner’s momentum, McCullum throws the ball to Vettori and what a man to be able to turn to in that situation. With subtle variation and unerring accuracy starts with four dots, the last of which Warner crunches in the direction of short mid-on. With each successive dot, the local crowd lets off a louder cheer but finally Warner clips two through cover to finish it off.
6th over: Australia 51-1 (Warner 23, Watson 7)
Boult’s on the mark again here, giving his skipper the kind of control and offering the pressure that Southee is struggling to maintain at the other end. McCullum has a man - Southee in fact - at a catching third mand and that seems a masterstroke when Warner slashes high into that area but the ball drops a couple of metres short. Warner probaby breathes a sigh of relief.
@rustyjacko Highest aggregate ODI score 872 surely under threat here. Small boundaries + big hitting sides
— phil withall (@phil_withall) February 28, 2015
Though strangely, Eden Park doesn’t have an extensive history of big scores. This pitch is like concrete though, so you might be right Phil.
5th over: Australia 48-1 (Warner 21, Watson 6)
Ooh, Southee’s back to his old tricks now. He drops one short to Warner and is summarily dispatched to the fine leg boundary and then another, which is flogged high over mid wicket for another. McCullum adjusts his field but he’s always reacting at the moment. Will Warner cause his own demise though? He’s certainly going very hard very early here.
4th over: Australia 39-1 (Warner 12, Watson 6)
Finally a sense of calm is reached when Boult ties up Watson following a two and a single to to Warner. The over finishes with a yorker that knocks Watto clean off his feet but he brushes himself off and lives to fight another over.
“NZ need to get their death bowlers on immediately,” says reader Disco Bob.
3rd over: Australia 36-1 (Warner 9, Watson 6)
Tim Southee won’t die wondering. First up to Watson he is full and fast with an attempted yorker - bowled under the not-unreasonable theory that Watson is susceptible to being rapped on the pads early - but the big Aussie cracks what turns out a full toss to the deep square leg boundary and then gets two more in the same region. This match is refusing to settle into a pattern. Nervous energy abounds.
WICKET! Finch b Southee 14 (Australia 30-1)
A breakthrough! Southee’ s second over started ingloriously when he was pummeled over long-on for a massive six but in looking to press home the advantage to a ridiculous degree, Finch is too brash and too loose to a straight one next up and has his off stump splattered. What an explosive start to the game this has been. Southee pumps his fist and lets off a primal scream and well he might; prior to that ball he might have been wondering whether this would be a horror day. He has the early wicket and New Zealand is back on track.
2nd over: Australia 24-0 (Finch 8, Warner 9)
The Kiwis appear to be working on the theory that both of these Australian batsmen are lethal when given width outside off stump, though Trent Boult strays early. He’s short and wide outside off stump, giving David Warner licencse to streakily flay a top-edge over third man for six. Geez that flew over the rope. Absurd.
Warner follows that with two through cover but he plays with fire from the next when Boult nearly takes an outside edge from a lusty drive. Boult is moving it away from the left-hander at an appreciable rate.
Reader Phil Withall, meanwhile, has some predictions:
“1) There will be at least one Tony Abbott style “shirt fronting” incident. 2) Shane Warne will make a minimum of six ill advised tweets. 3) Ian Smith will turn a dangerous shade of puce. 4) Brad Haddin to do something stupid and something miraculous.”
1st over: Australia 15-0 (Finch 8, Warner 1)
Tim Southee takes the new ball for the Kiwis and though his first delivery is fast and swinging appreciably, it’s also a Harmison-esque wide and Ronchi behind the stumps does well to get across and reel it in. Next up Southee’s short and pulled away for three by a gleeful Finch and then sprays another big wide down the leg side to Warner.
Warner gets a single and then Southee’s minor nightmare of an opening over continues when he strays onto Finch’s pads and gets clipped to the fine leg boundary. “Woeful, I like your word there,” says Mark Waugh of Ian Smith’s Southee appraisal. It gets worse when the final delivery trampolines high past Warner’s ear and over Ronchi’s head for four more byes. The Aussies are off to a flyer.
Poor Chris Bowden, meanwhile. Check out his sob story: “I will be following your coverage Russell. Had four tickets to the game but by a twist of fate I am currently in Seoul, meaning no game and little coverage. Kiwis I know are nervously excited about this game, with nothing particularly at stake given the position of both teams we can allow ourselves to enjoy it. A little.”
Good luck Chris!
As the national anthems sound out across the ground...
There is very good news for fans of automobiles being hit by cricket balls. This looks like an insanely susceptible position in which to place a new car. I might be wrong, but I don’t think I am.
The Hyundai has never been more in the game @rustyjacko pic.twitter.com/UOUOF2IzA8
— Will Macpherson (@willis_macp) February 28, 2015
More on that Australian decision to bat
Has Michael Clarke erred? Is Brendan McCullum foxing? Ian Smith says it’s far easier to chase on this ground because the short boundaries are hard to defend. Surely that theory holds true in the first innings too, Smithy? They don’t shrink when it gets dark...
Surprised @CricketAus have elected to bat in Auckland history & ground size points towards it being a hard ground to defend! #AUSvNZ #WCC15
— Tom Moody (@TomMoodyCricket) February 28, 2015
I think every time I lost a toss I’d say I’d always planned to do whatever the winning captain just forced me to do. Mind games. #NZvAUS
— Dan Liebke (@LiebCricket) February 28, 2015
Any Kiwis out there?
I get the sense that there’s some nerves jangling away in the land of the long white cloud...
Met a few people in Wellington so excited about today's game, they were on the verge of a nervous break down. Never seen this for cricket.
— Andrew Fernando (@andrewffernando) February 28, 2015
Your emails
“Dear old Russell,” starts Robert Wilson in what I hope is only the first of many reader emails today. “As a dyed in the wool Test Match snob, I would like to complain bitterly about how good this World Cup has been. Ireland and Afghanistan win wonderfully, the Kiwis tonk the English into the Stone Age, Southee showed what bowling smarts are for and some of the batting has been grotesquely fabulous - unicorn-level strangeness.”
“It’s a nightmare. I am humming Kylie Minogue songs and losing all interest in Pushkin. I am deeply ashamed.”
Feel no shame, Disco Bobby. Submit yourself to this glorious sin. Did you watch AB de Villiers last night? It was like Boogie Nights without the downward spiral into self-loathing and despair. P.T. Anderson-Villiers, if you will. He was 89 off 45 with five overs left and made 162 not out. How does that even happen? Chris Gayle - fresh from 215 the game before - I think probably allowed himself to be bowled because he knew he couldn’t better de Villiers’ knock. That or he had a bottle of Moet on ice beside his Jacuzzi, I’m not sure.
This World Cup, it has to be said, is off its chops.
The Toss and teams
Simon Doull walks Michael Clarke and Brendan McCullum to the centre for the toss. Clarke calls tails and succeeds, so Australia will bat first.
“I think it would be nice to put some runs on the board,” says Clarke, “we’re sick of training to be honest,” he adds of Australia’s unusual preparation for this game.
Has Clarke made the right call though? “We would have bowled first actually,” says a not-displeased McCullum. He points to a body of statistics that support his contention. “It’s an exciting time,” he adds. New Zealand go in with an unchanged line-up and clearly, they’ll be looking for early movement and wickets.
Australia: Warner, Finch, Watson, Clarke, Smith, Maxwell, Marsh, Haddin, Johnson, Starc, Cummins.
New Zealand: Guptill, McCullum, Williamson, Taylor, Elliott, Anderson, Ronchi, Vettori, Milne, Southee, Boult.
An unconventional display of patriotism
Actually this might be the official singer, who knows?
Ok... #cwc15 #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/AQEQ84acP1
— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) February 28, 2015
Stars of the World Cup
If Shapoor Zadran has been the greatest cult hero of this World Cup, there’s also been some great performances from New Zealand’s Jimmy Neesham, and he didn’t even make the final squad. You’ve really got to check out his twitter feed.
How fizzed up is NZ for the game today?! TWO TEAMS ENTER, ONE TEAM LEAVES. . . . FOLLOWED BY THE OTHER A LITTLE LATER ON A DIFFERENT BUS.
— Jimmy Neesham (@JimmyNeesh) February 28, 2015
That snicko was very low and muffled, not high and spiky like a usual edge. I reckon the man in seat 32B might've let one slip.
— Jimmy Neesham (@JimmyNeesh) February 15, 2015
Kit update
Personally I’m a big fan of New Zealand’s strip for this World Cup. Australia’s? Bringing back the canary yellow is a good start and they’ve kept it simple, but it still doesn’t make the heart sing like the 1992 kits. If this is a topic for which you feel a great deal of passion, don’t hesitate to email or tweet through your favourites.
Gonna party like it's 1992? http://t.co/cPoriHSWXz #cwc15 #AUSvNZ pic.twitter.com/4RSi09bm19
— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) February 28, 2015
What I’m looking forward to
There are so many unknown quantities heading into this game.
How will David Warner and Aaron Finch - supreme at times in the endless procession of ODIs against England and India in the past 12 months - handle the swing and speed of Tim Southee and Trent Boult?
Flipping that equation, how will the likes of Brendan McCullum, Kane Williamson and even late-order slugger Corey Anderson fare against the significantly-increased pace they’ll face from the Mitches? Darren Lehmann rather cheekily suggested that it will be a big adjustment for McCullum. I think he’s doing okay at the moment, Boof.
I’m probably not the only one who’ll be watching Clarke and Watson through my fingers. My theory: Watson’s unlikely to lose his position this late in Australia’s title preparations, but he’s certainly under pressure given Mitchell Marsh’s upward trajectory and the imminent return of James Faulkner.
Really though, we should just be licking our lips at the prospect of such an even match-up; both sides are loaded with explosive talent and hope that neither yields to circumspection or subterfuge. A shoot-out is what I want.
Brett Lee, meanwhile, is indicating that the Eden Park pitch is a road. We might see a lot of runs today. Brace yourselves, bowlers.
Flat! @cricketworldcup @CricketAus May the best team win #sweetas pic.twitter.com/N4FPDLxE5F
— Brett Lee (@BrettLee_58) February 28, 2015
Nobody does an awkward sports jersey presentation like the Aussies
How uninspired does Kyrie Irving look?
Aussie-born @KyrieIrving & @matthewdelly #GoGold today to support @mclarke23 & @cricketaus in the #CWC15 showdown! pic.twitter.com/jQ58DpIu5E
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) February 27, 2015
Preamble
Hello OBOers and welcome to this hotly-anticipated clash between the tournament co-hosts New Zealand and Australia, who are doing battle today at Eden Park, Auckland.
Russell Jackson here taking you through the entire day. Lucky me, lucky yo...well, I guess you can make up your own mind on that one. You can get me on russell.jackson@theguardian.com or via twitter: @rustyjacko
Let’s be honest, barely a single match between the full member nations so far has reached any great heights as a contest, which isn’t to say that this hasn’t been a thrilling World Cup. It has. The associates have been pure joy. This game might a real moment though. Quite unbelievably - and lamentably - this is only the third ODI clash between these Antipodean neighbours in the last 5 years.
What does that man? Well, both are as familiar with Afghanistan as they are with each others’ limited overs line-ups. A lot of them have played IPL together, of course, but there’s an element of the unknown about how the two sides will match up. There’s been plenty of verbal sparring in the lead-up - mainly from the Aussies to be perfectly honest - and this is an encounter by two very strong sides, both of whom are in serious form.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait for it to get under way. At home, I feel as though the Kiwis should be slight favourites. The result doesn’t really matter in the context of the finals, in which both teams will figure, but it’s loaded with psychological implications; if New Zealand lose to the Aussies at home, would they fancy themselves in an MCG final?
This game will also see the return of Aussie skipper Michael Clarke, who jockeys George Bailey out of both the leadership role and his spot in the side. The other change for the Aussies is Pat Cummins, who returns in place of Josh Hazlewood. I’ll have more team news shortly.
Russ will be along shortly; in the meantime here’s what Shane Watson had to say earlier in the week on the hostile reception he expects at Eden Park.
I know Saturday is going to be hostile from the times I’ve played here before. I certainly know we’re not favourites. That’s the exciting thing about going out here. We know we’re not very welcome. Players and fans try to do everything to prevent us winning.
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