New Zealand overpowers Ireland
Stabroek News
April 10, 2007
New Zealand climbed to the top of the Super Eights points table and moved into the semi-final with a convincing 129-run win over the fighting Ireland team in the last Super Eight match to be played at the Providence Stadium yesterday.
New Zealand elected to bat first after winning the toss and scored 261-8 of 50 overs.
They were led by a well-paced 110-ball 83 decorated with nine fours from opener Peter Fulton which was good enough to snare the man-of-the-match award.
After posting the challenging target New Zealand then ripped through the deep Irish batting line-up sending them reeling to defeat as they crumbled from 110-4 to 137 all out in 37.4 overs.
Ireland had actually kept the Kiwis in check for most of the innings with the steady medium pace of David Langford-Smith (2-41) and the guile and control of off-spinners Kyle Mc Callan (2-35) and Andrew White (2-45).
A 71-run eight-wicket partnership between Brendan McCullum and James Franklin enabled the Kiwis to post the challenging total after it had appeared that they were on pace for a much smaller total.
The New Zealand openers Fulton and skipper Stephen Fleming enjoyed a fast start scoring 30 runsafter four overs.
Fulton did most of the early scoring but Fleming joined the fray by smashing a full toss from Boyd Rankin pitched out side the off-stump to the backward point boundary for four.
However, trying to repeat the feat he was well caught at point by William Porterfield after scoring ten with the score on 35.
Hamish Marshall wasted no time taking two fours off the bowling of Langford-Smith in the seventh over and Fulton subsequently brought up the fifty with a lofted drive over midwicket off Rankin.
Marshall (16) then tried to loft a Smith delivery over extra cover but the ball came back into the right-hander took the inside portion of the bat and Eoin Morgan took a great overhead catch while running backwards.
Scott Styris smashed Ireland skipper Trent Johnston for two boundaries including an immaculate drive through the covers for four in the 16th over but in the next over, just after the first water break, he was deceived by a slower ball from Smith, got an outside edge and was caught by Niall O'Brien for 10.
Craig McMillan smashed the first ball of the 22nd over from Rankin over extra cover for six and then two balls later smashed a short ball to backward point for four.
Fulton was still going strong albeit at a slower pace. He brought up his sixth ODI fifty which was scored from 70 balls and included eight fours with a single of Kyle McCallan.
McMillan then tried to cut a short ball from McCallan, misjudged the bounce and Johnston at backward point made no mistake with the catch as New Zealand slipped to 118-4.
Jacob Oram joined Fulton and brought some stability to the innings but just after they had put on fifty runs for the fifth wicket a surprise shower appeared out of nowhere and interrupted play for six minutes.
Ten deliveries after play resumed Fulton played across the line to an on-target off-break from McCallan and was trapped leg-before-wicket with the score on 172.
Showers returned at the fall of Fulton 's wicket and a further 17 minutes play were lost on this occasion with play eventually resuming in brilliant sunshine.
After 40 overs, Ireland had done well to restrict the potent New Zealand batting line up to 178-5.
The usually aggressive Oram, who had been cautious scoring 20 of 47 balls, tried to step up the pace by attempting to loft the other off-spinner Andrew White over mid-wicket, was deceived in flight and Eoin Morgan judged the difficult catch well to remove him with the score on 181.
Daniel Vettori tried to tuck a ball pitched outside the leg stump behind square and gloved a catch to O'Brien for five in the 43rd over.
But James Franklin joined McCullum and they provided the lift badly needed by the Kiwis. After a drought of boundaries Franklin took Johnston for two consecutive fours while McMillan also pulled Franklin for another boundary as the pair tallied 16 from the over.
Franklin heralded the fifty partnership by clipping Kevin O'Brien for four through backward square then lofted the next ball over mid wicket for six.
McCullum destroyed a window section in the press box with a six off Johnson but was caught of the next delivery at mid-wicket for a quick-fire 47 from 37 balls including two fours and a six.
Franklin was left not out for a valuable 34 scored in 22 balls including three fours and one six as New Zealand closed at 263-8 in 50 overs.
Ireland continued their run of bad starts when Shane Bond had Jeremy Bray caught behind by McCullum for one with the score on five. His partner William Porterfield soon followed caught by Scott Styris also off Bond for 11 with the score on 22.
Things worsened for the Irish when their best batsman Morgan was caught behind off Oram also for 11.
The O'Brien brothers then came together to provide respectability to the total with a 75-run partnership.
Kevin O'Brien smacked two fours and three sixes and was responding to his brother's call for a cheeky single when he was sent back and run out one short of his third ODI fifty with the score 110-4. At this point the Vettori and Jeetan Patel show began.
The two spinners were just too good for the opposition as wickets fell like ninepins in a bowling alley.
Only skipper Johnston reached double-figures during this period as White, McCallan and Rankin were all Vettori's victims before they could trouble the scorers.
Peter Gillespie (2) brought in for the injured Andre Botha, broke the string of ducks when he was one of Vettori's three consecutive leg-before scalps.
New Zealand now with eight points and a run rate of +1.73 sit on top of the table as they take on Sri Lanka in Grenada on Thursday.
Ireland with their only victory coming in the group stage when they upset Pakistan will be up against the new ODI leaders Australia on Friday in Barbados.
(Roger Persaud)