Rampant England Storm Past Kiwis
England dominated with bat and ball to beat New Zealand by 87 runs and qualify for the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy, ahead of their final game with Australia, a match that they could lose and still top the group.
It was not a match in which England were perfect, as 310 was nothing more than a good score, even on a pitch that certainly favoured the bowlers, but they batted well for large spells, with Hales, Root, Stokes and Buttler all looking in good nick, the latter with a ridiculous ramp shot out of the ground. Even though none of them were able to kick on and convert their scores into a big innings, England still set a very competitive total, and their bowlers did the rest.
And the fact that they could rely on their bowlers to not just defend a total of 310, but rip through New Zealand, even without their best pace bowler in Chris Woakes is terrific news for England, as that is the side of their game that has been questioned. But as soon as Ball and Wood picked up the new ball they were in business; keeping it tight and causing problems, with Ball's fourth delivery crashing into Luke Ronchi's middle stump to set the tone.
Martin Guptill looked dangerous until clutch bowler Ben Stokes found an edge, but the big wicket came when Wood removed danger-man Kane Williamson with a snorting cross-seam bouncer for 87 off 98, with New Zealand needing 153 off 29.4 overs. It was a chaseable total with one of the world's very best at the crease and well set, but as Williamson fell so did New Zealand.
The main beneficiary was Liam Plunkett, who after Ball picked up his second wicket in Ross Taylor, ripped into the lower order, taking 4-55, with Adil Rashid doing his bit by taking 2-47. After Williamson left New Zealand 158-3, wickets fell at regular intervals as New Zealand collapsed to 233 all out in less than 45 overs.
But wickets weren't necessarily the only key factor, although losing Williamson was the death knell to New Zealand's chances. Ball and Wood in particular kept things tight all day, leaving New Zealand always chasing in bowler friendly conditions. They were going at below 5 an over for the majority of their innings, building the pressure and the required run rate to the point that they simply couldn't accelerate. Ball conceded just 31 runs off his eight overs, Wood 32 off his nine.
The only main downside for England is the continued poor form of Jason Roy, who felt his way into the match, scoring just 13 off 23. And just as he was getting confident, stepping across his crease, he ended up stepping too far, only to be bowled around his legs by an intelligent piece of bowling from Milne, who removed both of England's openers but went for 79 runs. It was a similar story for Corey Anderson who took crucial wickets but was spanked, removing Root, Morgan and Moeen but going for 55 runs off his 9 overs.
Nevertheless, this was comprehensive for England, and a seriously impressive display against one of the better teams in the tournament. New Zealand will be hoping that their opponents can do them a favour and be equally impressive against Australia, or they will be crashing out of this tournament. But from the Kiwis perspective, there's every reason to think England will beat Australia, meaning that a win against Bangladesh would see New Zealand through, although probably to face India.
The Hard and Fast Section
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- Lions suffer embarrasing tour defeat.
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