ODI World Cup 2023: Trent Boult’s compelling spell fuels New Zealand’s five-wicket win over SL, keeps semi-final hopes alive
Bengaluru: Trent Boult’s rediscovery of his magic with a new ball fueled New Zealand’s frantic victory over a miserable Sri Lanka and kept their World Cup semi-final dreams intact here on Th
Bangalore: Trent Boult’s rediscovery of his magic with a new ball fueled New Zealand’s frenetic five-wicket win over miserable Sri Lanka and kept their World Cup semi-final dreams intact on Thursday.
Daryl Mitchell (43 off 31 balls) milked the good platform of openers Devon Conway (45 off 42 balls) and Rachin Ravindra (42 off 34 balls) with their 86-run stand as the Kiwis chased down the target of 172 in 23.2 overs .
The result helped them snap a four-match losing streak in the event, and it was also the perfect culmination of the demolition job that Boult started with his excellent three-wicket burst (3/37).
New Zealand (NRR: +0.743) have 10 points after their league matches and they are likely to join India, Australia and South Africa in the last four legs unless Pakistan or Afghanistan, who have eight points each, go for a wonder worries.
In their final league match, Pakistan (NRR: +0.036) will face England on Saturday, while Afghanistan (NRR: -0.338) will take on South Africa tomorrow.
Against the backdrop of all those calculations, it was important that the Kiwis win big to stay ahead of the other contenders, and both Conway and Ravindra were aware of that.
They mercilessly exploited the Lankan bowlers’ struggle to find the right line.
Pacer Dushmantha Chameera managed to get some lift off the field at times, but nothing was truly non-negotiable. Ravindra proved that with a six off Chameera himself and a few more maximums from spinner De Silva.
However, Conway would come to regret missing a fifty that was his for the taking after Chameera landed in the circle with a small shimmy and whack into the hands of De Silva.
Conway has failed to reach a fifty in eight innings in this tournament, after starting with a big hundred against England in Ahmedabad.
Ravindra too could have added another fifty-plus score to his swelling string of runs, but his almighty cross heave off Maheesh Theekshana could not clear De Silva midway through the match.
At 88 for 2 in the 14th over, New Zealand were not in trouble, but they needed some quick runs to stay ahead in the run-rate math.
Mitchell did just that. The right-hander has been a quiet success story for the Black Caps in the showpiece match, amassing over 400 runs at an average of 67.33 at a strike-rate of 109.78.
The 32-year-old came in at number 4 and often acted as a link between the top and bottom hitters, gluing the innings together.
He carried out the task again with carefully planned stroke play and Mitchell picking the gaps with precision was a joy to watch.
The Hamilton man also used his feet well against Theekshana, never allowing him to settle down, evidenced by the huge six he hit over long stretches.
But Mark Chapman’s unnecessary run while the Kiwis were cruising was a sore point as he had to sacrifice his wicket for Mitchell, and the former wasn’t entirely happy about it either.
However, New Zealand managed to get past the tape from that point without too many problems.
But for that smooth win, the Black Caps would have to thank Boult’s compelling showing in the afternoon, who was ably assisted by the skilful left-arm spin of Mitchell Santner (2/22).
Their effort reduced a combative 51 off 28 balls from Lankan opener Kusal Perera, dropped on 1 by stumper Tom Latham off Tim Southee, to a mere footnote in an otherwise shabby batting effort.
Boult has struggled with his rhythm in the last few games, but the 35-year-old showed his true colors with a little flick in the air as he whipped the ball around.
After Southee Pathum bowled Nissanka overboard, the left-arm pacer dismissed Lankan captain Kusal Mendis, whose mistimed pull ended with Ravindra almost square leg, in the first ball of the fifth over.
Three balls later, Boult lofted one over the in-form Sadeera Samarawickrama, and the indecisive right-hander nibbled it to Latham.
A few overs later, Boult trapped Charith Asalanka in front of the wicket with one that edged in to reduce Lanka to 70 for four, well inside the first 10 overs.
Angelo Matthews and Dhananjaya de Silva could not nullify Santner’s accuracy and the deliveries that spun away from them and perished cheaply, effectively ending the Lankan struggle.
However, with the Lankan castle crumbling around him, Perera played a gem of an innings.
Perera had failed to make the kind of impact expected of him, making just one fifty against Australia in the tournament and failing to reach double figures in five other innings.
However, the southpaw was in his element here, beating the Kiwi bowlers around the park.
Perera made Southee suffer the most. He got 18 runs off the pacer’s third over, the sixth innings, through a sequence of 6, 4, 4, 4.
The pick-up six off his legs over long-on and the drive past the point fielder were the standout shots in that sequence.
Perera soon reached his 17th ODI fifty with another superb cover drive from returning pacer Lockie Ferguson.
But the fun soon ended when Ferguson had the last laugh: an attempted loft over the covers ended at Santner’s hands.
Ferguon, who tapped Theekshana on the arm, returned to rattle the late-order batsmen with his high pace, preventing him from relieving the pressure.
Theekshana and Dilshan Madhushanke added 43 runs for the last wicket, the highest in the Lankan essay, but they could not find a total that even New Zealand can surpass.