| 0.0 : A new day, a new beginning. That is what New Zealand will be thinking. After a hammering in the first game, they are back to face England in the second T20I, with the venue this time being the Westpac Stadium in Wellington. Will that bring any change in their fortunes? England will be brimming with confidence and look for a 2-0 series lead. Hello and a warm welcome. |
| TOSS - Eoin Morgan has won the flip of the coin once again. Toss could be very crucial in places like these. ENGLAND OPT TO CHASE. |
| New Zealand (Playing XI) - Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, Tim Seifert(WK), Colin de Grandhomme, Ross Taylor, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham (IN FOR SCOTT KUGGELEIJN), Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee(C), Ish Sodhi and Lockie Ferguson. |
| England (Playing XI) - Jonny Bairstow, Dawid Malan, James Vince, Eoin Morgan(c), Sam Billings(WK), Sam Curran, Lewis Gregory, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Saqib Mahmood (IN FOR TOM CURRAN) and Pat Brown. |
| The players walk out to the middle. Martin Guptill and Colin Munro are the regular openers for the Kiwis. Sam Curran to start off proceedings to Guptill, with a slip in place. Here we go... |
| 0.1 : Sam Curran to M Guptill, Good start. Swinging in, a yorker, around off, nicely dug out. |
| 0.2 : Sam Curran to M Guptill, Full and around off, Guptill swings hard but can only find mid on. |
| 0.3 : Sam Curran to M Guptill, Outside off, on a length, Guppy plays inside the line and misses. |
| Morgan senses that Guptill might go for the big shot. So mid on drops back, third man comes up while mid-wicket goes slightly deeper. |
| 0.4 : Sam Curran to M Guptill, Full and outside off, driven through the covers for a single to get off the mark. |
| 0.5 : Sam Curran to C Munro, Down the leg side, fuller in length, Munro misses his flick and is hit on the pads. A leg bye taken. |
| 0.6 : Sam Curran to M Guptill, Around middle, worked through mid-wicket for a run. So pleasing for the fielding captain to see your opening bowler go for just a solitary run. |
| Big moment for the young man. Debutant Saqib Mahmood to share the new ball with Sam Curran. |
| 1.1 : S Mahmood to M Guptill, Good start. Short and wide outside off, Guptill throws his bat at it but misses. Good pace. |
| 1.2 : S Mahmood to M Guptill, SIX! Welcome to international cricket, Mr. Mahmood. Full and outside off, Guptill goes up and over and clears mid on! |
| 1.3 : S Mahmood to M Guptill, Around middle, tucked through square leg for a single. |
| 1.4 : S Mahmood to C Munro, Down the leg side, Munro looks to flick but misses and is hit on the pads. The ball deflects to the leg side and a leg bye is taken. |
| 1.5 : S Mahmood to M Guptill, On middle and leg, tucked through mid-wicket for a run. |
| 1.6 : S Mahmood to C Munro, SIX! Second biggie of the over! Mahmood's first over in international cricket has gone for 15. A length ball, on the pads, Munro just picks this up and sends it over deep square leg! |
| 2.1 : Sam Curran to M Guptill, Short and outside off, punched towards cover for a single. |
| 2.2 : Sam Curran to C Munro, A short ball, pulled to deep mid-wicket for a run. |
| 2.3 : Sam Curran to M Guptill, A short ball, around middle, worked through square leg for one. |
| 2.4 : Sam Curran to C Munro, WIDE. A full toss, down the leg side, Munro misses his flick. |
| Sam Curran to C Munro, WIDE. ANOTHER ONE. The length is dragged back and bowled outside off, Colin slashes but misses. |
| Sam Curran to C Munro, OUT! LBW! Plumb, plumb, dead plumb. Oh wait, Munro is walking across for a review chat. Why? Don't! 10 seconds, says the umpire. 5 seconds. Timed out. Terrific decision for New Zealand. Yes, New Zealand. Because they would have lost the review. Munro walked across his stumps and Curran saw that. Fired in a yorker, or just about short of one, around middle. Colin looked to flick but missed. Ball Tracker shows it to be crashing into the leg stump. |
| Tim Seifert walks in at number 3, replacing Munro. His highest score of 84 last summer came against the Indians, at this very ground. |
| 2.5 : Sam Curran to Tim Seifert, Full and around off, driven towards mid on. |
| 2.6 : Sam Curran to Tim Seifert, Outside off, punched through the covers for a single to get off the mark. |
| The T20 specialist, Chris Jordan comes into the attack now. |
| 3.1 : C Jordan to Tim Seifert, Outside off, punched towards cover. |
| 3.2 : C Jordan to Tim Seifert, Outside off, another back foot punch. |
| 3.3 : C Jordan to Tim Seifert, A length ball outside off, Seifert slashes but misses. |
| 3.4 : C Jordan to Tim Seifert, Short again, some extra bounce, Tim comes down the track and has a swish, only to miss. |
| 3.5 : C Jordan to Tim Seifert, The batsman works it down the leg side. |
| 3.6 : C Jordan to Tim Seifert, Outside off, punched through the covers for a couple. Excellent start from Jordan. |
| Morgan learns from his mistake in Christchurch. The temptation to persist with Sam Curran is resisted and the man who has been recently signed by Melbourne Stars in the Big Bash, is here. Pat Brown to bowl. |
| 4.1 : Pat Brown to M Guptill, FOUR! Poor bowling, lazy fielding. A length ball, down the leg side, Guptill just gets a bit of a tickle. Adil Rashid at short fine leg, does not put in a dive, preferring to give it a chase instead and warms up nicely as the ball goes all the way. A dive was needed. |
| 4.2 : Pat Brown to M Guptill, FOUR! And again! Help yourself. Another buffet ball, length and down the leg side, tucked well wide of Rahid this time at short fine leg. |
| 4.3 : Pat Brown to M Guptill, Outside off, cut through point for a single. |
| 4.4 : Pat Brown to Tim Seifert, SIX! Terrific shot! Fractionally short outside off, Seifert pulls it high and handsome over deep mid-wicket! |
| 4.5 : Pat Brown to Tim Seifert, DROPPED! Ordinary fielding by James Vince. He had put one down in the previous game as well. Outside off, on a length, Seifert looks to go over the top, inside out but the extra bounce makes the ball hit the splice of the bat. The ball lobs towards point where James Vince runs back, gets to it but with the sun in his eyes, puts the ball down. A single taken. |
| 4.6 : Pat Brown to M Guptill, Outside off, run down to third man for a run. 17 runs plus a dropped catch from that over. |
| 5.1 : C Jordan to M Guptill, Full and outside off, driven straight to cover. |
| 5.2 : C Jordan to M Guptill, GLOVED! SAFE! A short ball, around off, Guptill looks to pull but is cramped for room as the ball comes back in sharply. Takes the glove and flies behind. Sam Billings leaps but cannot get there. Third man gets across and three runs are taken. |
| 5.3 : C Jordan to Tim Seifert, Outside off, driven through the covers for a single. |
| 5.4 : C Jordan to M Guptill, DROPPED, FOUR! James Vince cannot help himself. Catches don't stick in his hand! A length ball, around middle, Guptill looks to go big and straight back. But gets more height than distance. Vince runs to his left from long on, dives full stretch but only gets a thumb to it. Deflects the ball to the fence. Great effort, poor luck. |
| 5.5 : C Jordan to M Guptill, Short and outside off, cut through point for a single. |
| 5.6 : C Jordan to Tim Seifert, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot for a single. 10 from the final over of the Powerplay as New Zealand finish on 53/1. |
| Saqib Mahmood comes back into the attack. 1-0-14-0 so far. |
| 6.1 : S Mahmood to Tim Seifert, FOUR! BOSH! A short ball, around off, Seifert rocks back and pulls it through mid-wicket. There is a soul in the deep who races to his left, sticks his hand out with a dive but misses. |
| 6.2 : S Mahmood to Tim Seifert, The batsman has punched the ball off the back foot. |
| 6.3 : S Mahmood to Tim Seifert, OUT! Caught down the leg side! The debutant gets his first T20I wicket. Has gone for a bit of a stick but he will take this scalp. Full and around off, Seifert gets across to paddle but is not quite able to connect cleanly. The ball hits the toe end of the bat and flies behind to Billings who does the rest. Another flop show from Seifert. |
| Colin de Grandhomme walks in at number 4, replacing Seifert. |
| 6.4 : S Mahmood to de Grandhomme, Full and around off, pushed towards long on for a single. |
| 6.5 : S Mahmood to M Guptill, Pushed towards cover for a quick run. |
| 6.6 : S Mahmood to de Grandhomme, A bouncer outside off, de Grandhomme sways away. Much better over from Mahmood - 6 runs and a wicket. |
| Adil Rashid comes on. |
| 7.1 : A Rashid to M Guptill, Full and outside off, Guptill looks to punch but misses. |
| 7.2 : A Rashid to M Guptill, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads. They pick up a single. |
| 7.3 : A Rashid to de Grandhomme, Short and outside off, slapped through the covers for a couple. |
| 7.4 : A Rashid to de Grandhomme, Outside off, drilled to sweeper cover for a run. |
| 7.5 : A Rashid to M Guptill, SIX! BRUTAL! Fractionally short and punished. It is around off and Guptill picks the length in a trice. Rocks back and pulls it over mid-wicket! |
| 7.6 : A Rashid to M Guptill, Full and around off, swept through square leg for a single. 11 from Rashid's opener. |
| Pat Brown is back into the attack. 1-0-17-0 so far. |
| 8.1 : Pat Brown to M Guptill, A length around off, nudged through mid on for a single. |
| 8.2 : Pat Brown to de Grandhomme, SIX! CLOBBERED! Too easy. Half volley, right in the slot outside off. De Grandhomme swings it into oblivion at deep mid-wicket. |
| 8.3 : Pat Brown to de Grandhomme, SIX! And again! Full and outside off, de Grandhomme just stays still, then swings his bat, sending the ball to deep mid-wicket. The fielder races to his left and dives but in vain. |
| 8.4 : Pat Brown to de Grandhomme, Works this down the leg side for a single. |
| 8.5 : Pat Brown to M Guptill, Full and around off, watchfully defended. |
| 8.6 : Pat Brown to M Guptill, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads. One run added to the total. 15 from Brown's second over. 2 less than this first. |
| 9.1 : A Rashid to M Guptill, OUT! Caught! 'Owwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!' That last word is a groan that escaped Martin Guptill's throat as he played that shot. A gift from Rashid and a return gift from Guppy. A half tracker, around middle, Martin pulls this but it is straight to deep backward square leg where James Vince - yes, James Vince - takes the catch. Guptill cannot believe what he has done. Neither can Rashid. |
| 0.0 : Ross Taylor is the new player at 5, replacing Guptill. |
| 9.2 : A Rashid to de Grandhomme, Outside off, punched off the back foot. |
| 9.3 : A Rashid to de Grandhomme, FOUR! Just over! Full and around middle, de Grandhomme looks to sweep but gets it off the inner half of the bat. Luckily for him, the ball just flies over short fine leg! |
| 9.4 : A Rashid to de Grandhomme, SIX! CLUBBED! Tossed up around off, de Grandhomme gets down and mows a slog sweep over mid-wicket. Into the bars! |
| 9.5 : A Rashid to de Grandhomme, Full and outside off, punched through the covers for a single. |
| 9.6 : A Rashid to R Taylor, Full and outside off, slashed straight to cover. A wicket but still 11 runs from it. New Zealand must target 180-190 from here. |
| Lewis Gregory gets a bowl. |
| 10.1 : L Gregory to de Grandhomme, OUT! BOWLED! Played on. A wicket first ball. Full and outside off, de Grandhomme continues his wild swiping, swinging at this one again, without moving his feet and gets a thick inside edge onto the stumps. Questionable approach. With Guptill gone just a few balls ago, was this shot needed? But then, he did the same to Rashid the next ball after Guppy got out. Useful cameo. |
| 0.0 : Daryl Mitchell walks in at number 6, replacing de Grandhomme. |
| 10.2 : L Gregory to D Mitchell, Full and around off, watchfully defended. |
| 10.3 : L Gregory to D Mitchell, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot. They pick up a single. |
| 10.4 : L Gregory to R Taylor, Down the leg side, Taylor misses his flick and is hit on the pads. |
| 10.5 : L Gregory to R Taylor, A short ball, around middle, Taylor hops and works it with the extra bounce through mid-wicket for a run. |
| 10.6 : L Gregory to D Mitchell, Full and around middle, driven straight back to the bowler. |
| 11.1 : A Rashid to R Taylor, Outside off, a push and a miss. |
| 11.2 : A Rashid to R Taylor, This is driven through the covers for a single. |
| 11.3 : A Rashid to D Mitchell, Around middle, pushed wide of long on for a run, to bring up New Zealand's 100. |
| 11.4 : A Rashid to R Taylor, SIX! CLUNK! Tossed up and gone. Right in the slot, full and outside off, Taylor gets down and slog sweeps this over mid-wicket. |
| 11.5 : A Rashid to R Taylor, EDGED, FOUR! Thrown up wide outside off, Taylor slashes hard and gets a thick outside edge. However, to his luck, it flies over a leaping backward point. |
| 11.6 : A Rashid to R Taylor, Full and around off, watchfully defended. 12 from Rashid's over. |
| 12.1 : L Gregory to D Mitchell, A short ball, around middle, pulled almost straight to fine leg. Does not carry. A single taken. |
| 12.2 : L Gregory to R Taylor, FOUR! Short and outside off, Taylor punches it very fine. Short third man dives to his right, but misses. |
| 12.3 : L Gregory to R Taylor, Full and outside off, driven towards long off for a run. |
| 12.4 : L Gregory to D Mitchell, Outside off, Mitchell slashes but misses. |
| 12.5 : L Gregory to D Mitchell, The batsman flicks it away with a wristy shot. The batsmen have run through for a single. |
| 12.6 : L Gregory to R Taylor, Full and around middle, worked through mid on for a run. |
| Sam Curran returns. 2-0-8-1 so far. |
| 13.1 : Sam Curran to R Taylor, A length ball, well outside off, close to a wide, left alone. But not wided. A stare from Taylor towards the umpire. |
| 13.2 : Sam Curran to R Taylor, Short and outside off, cut through point for a single. |
| 13.3 : Sam Curran to D Mitchell, Full on middle, pushed through mid on for a run. |
| 13.4 : Sam Curran to R Taylor, Outside off, punched through point for one more. |
| 13.5 : Sam Curran to D Mitchell, OUT! Caught! Poor choice of a shot from Mitchell. The wind is blowing into him, which means that going straight back over the bowler requires that extra effort. The length is full from Curran and that does the trick. Daryl is enticed to go big and straight. He hits it into the breeze, aiming to clear long on and Chris Jordan takes it easily. |
| James Neesham, playing his first T20I since January 2017, walks in at number 6, replacing Mitchell. |
| 13.6 : Sam Curran to R Taylor, On middle, pushed towards long on for a single. Just 4 runs and a wicket from the over as Curran continues to impress. |
| Change of ends for Adil Rashid for his final over. 3-0-34-1 so far. |
| 14.1 : A Rashid to R Taylor, Around off, defended back to the bowler. |
| 14.2 : A Rashid to R Taylor, Full and around middle, driven towards long off for a single. |
| 14.3 : A Rashid to J Neesham, Full and down the leg side, Neesham misses his flick and is hit on the pads. |
| 14.4 : A Rashid to J Neesham, FOUR! Another one down the leg side. This time Neesham does not miss out, clipping it past short fine leg. |
| 14.5 : A Rashid to J Neesham, The batsman has flicked the ball off his pads. |
| 14.6 : A Rashid to J Neesham, DROPPED! Don't tell me it is Vince again! It is. Poor lad. Cannot catch a cold. Well, that is not technically correct though - he did dismiss Guppy, didn't he? But he is having a torrid time on the field in Kiwiland. Full and around middle, Neesham gets down and plays the slog sweep. It is flat and does not have much elevation. Goes straight to deep mid-wicket where James Vince gets down to take the catch but spills it. A single taken. Rashid is furious. 4-0-40-1 for |
| 15.1 : Sam Curran to J Neesham, Full and around off, driven through mid off for a single. |
| 15.2 : Sam Curran to R Taylor, Works this down the leg side for a run. |
| 15.3 : Sam Curran to J Neesham, SIX! A rare bad ball from Sam. A length ball, on the pads, swung over deep backward square leg. |
| 15.4 : Sam Curran to J Neesham, A yorker now, around middle, dug out past the bowler for one. |
| 15.5 : Sam Curran to R Taylor, Full on middle, pushed through mid on for another single. |
| 15.6 : Sam Curran to J Neesham, A bouncer now, ducked under. Neesham looks at the square leg umpire for the wide signal but it doesn't come. It was a bit high. Curran has done his job though - 4-0-22-2. |
| Saqib Mahmood is back on. 2-0-20-1 so far. |
| 16.1 : S Mahmood to R Taylor, Full and around middle, worked through mid-wicket for a single. |
| 16.2 : S Mahmood to J Neesham, SIX! A gift. A length ball, on the pads, Neesham just picks it up and deposits it over backward square leg! |
| 16.3 : S Mahmood to J Neesham, Outside off, played through point for a run. |
| 16.4 : S Mahmood to R Taylor, Short and outside off, cut through point for one. |
| 16.5 : S Mahmood to J Neesham, Full and outside off, driven through the covers for another single. |
| 16.6 : S Mahmood to R Taylor, The batsman drives this through the covers. The fielder goes for a direct hit but misses the stumps. The batsmen have run through for a single. Superb comeback from the debutant - 4 singles after that second-ball six. |
| Chris Jordan returns. 2-0-12-0 so far. |
| 17.1 : C Jordan to R Taylor, Outside off, punched off the back foot for a single. |
| 17.2 : C Jordan to J Neesham, Play and a miss. Neesham smiles. He goes for the paddle but Jordan spots it. Reduces his pace to 108 kph and James is months early into his shot. |
| 17.3 : C Jordan to J Neesham, Around middle, flicked straight to deep backward square leg for a run. |
| 17.4 : C Jordan to R Taylor, OUT! Plumb LBW! Pinpoint accuracy. Taylor goes for the slog while Jordan goes for the yorker. The latter misses his length but the batsman misses too. It is a low full toss but it is dipping in with the angle. Taylor looks to slog but misses and is hit right in front of the stumps. Easy decision for the umpire. Ball Tracker shows it to be crashing into middle and off stumps. |
| Mitchell Santner walks in at number 8, replacing Taylor. |
| 17.5 : C Jordan to M Santner, Around off, watchfully defended. |
| 17.6 : C Jordan to M Santner, OUT! Caught! Another batsman not reading the breeze. A length ball around middle, Santner looks to heave it across the line but he is hitting into the wind. Cannot quite get the power and hands a simple catch to Pat Brown at long on. Two wickets in the over with just 2 singles. Fantastic from Jordan. |
| Captain Tim Southee is the latest entrant at number 9, replacing Santner. |
| 18.1 : S Mahmood to J Neesham, Full and around off, driven through mid off for a single. |
| 18.2 : S Mahmood to Tim Southee, Dropped short, pulled through mid-wicket for a run. |
| 18.3 : S Mahmood to J Neesham, SIX! Nice strike! Full and wide outside off, Neesham reaches out and carves it over extra cover! |
| 18.4 : S Mahmood to J Neesham, Around middle, heaved into the leg side for a couple. Nearly a third as the throw is wide at the bowler's end but the backup is good. |
| 18.5 : S Mahmood to J Neesham, FOUR! Not in control but will get a boundary. A length ball, down the leg side, Neesham looks to flick but the extra bounce makes the ball hit the top half of the bat. But it flies over short fine leg and then trickles into the ropes. |
| 18.6 : S Mahmood to J Neesham, Full and around off, pushed towards mid off for a quick run. 15 from the over, Saqib Mahmood's T20I figures on debut read - 4-0-46-1. |
| 19.1 : C Jordan to J Neesham, Yorker outside off, Neesham cannot dig it out. |
| 19.2 : C Jordan to J Neesham, Full and down the leg side, Neesham misses his flick and is hit on the pads. The ball deflects away past the keeper and a leg bye is taken. |
| 19.3 : C Jordan to Tim Southee, DROPPED! This time it is not Vince. A length ball, outside off, Southee swings hard but gets a bit of a top edge. Dawid Malan runs across to his left at deep mid-wicket but puts it down. Two runs taken. |
| 19.4 : C Jordan to Tim Southee, Outside off, pushed through point for a single. |
| 19.5 : C Jordan to J Neesham, SIX! CLUNK! A short ball, around middle, slower in pace, Neesham pulls it over mid-wicket! |
| A review on the final ball! Is that a wicket or a single? This is an umpire's review but England are not bothered. They are off. Chris Jordan is asking though. The soft signal is out. Replays are showing that Neesham has hit this straight to point. |
| 19.6 : C Jordan to J Neesham, OUT! Caught! The bat has hit the ground and the ball has hit the toe end. Full and wide outside off, Neesham looks to slash and does so. The ball goes straight to point. Now, Vince does not do anything, just quietly walks across towards his team. Then, he sees the batsmen running and appeals for the catch. His team is the least bit interested as Morgan is busy applauding his players. Jordan asks the umpire seriously and they refer it upstairs with the soft signal as |
| 10-15 runs short? Perhaps. With the way the Guptill-de Grandhomme partnership was flourishing, one would have expected a 190. England will take this total. |
| Once again, the bowling was spot on. Sam Curran set the tone early while Chris Jordan and Adil Rashid picked up the wickets. However, the newbies let the team down, with Mahmood and Brown going for 78 in 6 overs combined. |
| New Zealand showed a lot more intent today with the bat but one would have to question the approach of Colin de Grandhomme. It does not always work when you go after the bowler every ball and the dismissals of him and Guptill in the span of 7 balls robbed the Kiwis of some momentum. Having said that, Neesham's cameo towards the end has given some lift to the side. |
| James Neesham says that he is happy to get out there in the middle and do his best. Feels it is an interesting wicket, which is holding up, so cross seamers and cutters are the way to go. Believes that it is not a road and they were targeting 180, so they are pretty much on the mark. Believes that if New Zealand can pick up wickets regularly, they can win. |
| 177 to win then. Big targets are usually scaled down with ease here. Can New Zealand fight hard with the ball? Stay tuned... |
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