New Zealand started their T20 World Cup 2022 campaign in a dominating fashion as they thrashed hosts Australia by 89 runs at Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday (October 22).
Asked to bat first, the Kiwis rode on opener Devon Conway’s unbeaten 92 off 58 balls to pile up a mammoth 200/3 on the board. Finn Allen also played a blazing knock of 16-ball 42 at the top.
It was a tough outing for the Aussie bowlers as all of them were taken to the cleaners. In terms of wickets, pacer Josh Hazlewood was the most successful bowler as he picked a couple of scalps by conceding 41 runs in his four overs.
In reply, Australia’s innings folded for a paltry 111 in 17.1 overs. It was a listless batting display as no one even managed to touch the 30-run mark. Glenn Maxwell was the top scorer with 20-ball 28.
Tim Southee starred with the ball for the BlackCaps, claiming three wickets by giving away only six runs in his 2.1 overs. Mitchell Santner also returned with three scalps and went for 31 runs in his four overs while Trent Boult (2-24), Lockie Ferguson (1-20), and Ish Sodhi (1-29) were also among the wickets.
For their flawless performance in the first Super-12 match, the Kane Williamson-led New Zealand team received rich praise from the cricket fraternity on Twitter.
Here are the reactions:
