|
|
| January 07, 2007 | Sunday | Zilhaj 16, 1427 |
New Zealand suffer worst ever one-day loss
AUCKLAND, Jan 6: New Zealand crashed to their worst ever One-day International cricket loss on Saturday in a humiliating 189-run defeat conjured by some magic from Sri Lankan veterans Sanath Jayasuriya and Chaminda Vaas.
New Zealand could only muster 73 runs – their second lowest ever one day total – in what skipper Stephen Fleming conceded was a ‘rubbish’ performance in chasing the tourists' solid 262-6.
A whirlwind 70 off 44 balls by 37-year-old opener Jayasuriya provided the fireworks in the Sri Lankan innings.
Another important contribution came from the side's most consistent batsman Kumar Sangakkara, who held the Sri Lankan innings together with 79 from 103 balls after it threatened to go off the rails with the fall of three quick wickets.
In reply New Zealand had no answer to a great spell of in-swing bowling from 32-year-old Vaas. He trapped New Zealand skipper Stephen Fleming (0), Ross Taylor (0) and Hamish Marshall (3) in successive overs to finish with 3-10 from eight overs.
Speedster Lasith Malinga was also devastating, taking 3-14 from eight overs and master spinner Muttiah Muralitharan had 2-7 from his 2.3 overs at the tail of the innings.
The victory leaves the series tied at 2-2 with one match left to play in Hamilton on Tuesday.
New Zealand's longstanding batting weaknesses were again cruelly exposed with the World Cup only two months away.
“It's rubbish, that's what it was,” said Fleming, returning to the side after being rested for the first three matches.
“I would certainly pay credit to some fine bowling by Chaminda at the top who swung the ball but there was some average batting.”
He said the team was “pretty alarmed” by the performance and their recent history of failing to score runs in the top and middle of the batting order.
New Zealand were in trouble right from the start as wickets tumbled against Vaas. Sangakkara also took a spectacular wrongfooted catch to dismiss opener Brendon McCallum off Farveez Maharoof and by the 7th over New Zealand's innings was already close to beyond repair at 25-4.
Batsman Craig McMillan, playing at the top level for only the second time in the last year, was the only New Zealand batsman to show significant resistance with an undefeated 29.
Jayasuriya brought the crowd alive earlier when in the space of 13 balls the veteran belied his age to pummel 43 runs in an extraordinary series of on-drives and pull shots. His innings included seven fours and five sixes.
He smashed three consecutive sixes off Michael Mason in the 11th over and another off the first ball of the next over from Mark Gillespie to score four sixes off five consecutive balls faced.
Gillespie brought the run feast to an end when Jayasuriya miscued him to fine leg in the 16th over. Another two quick wickets from Gillespie left Sri Lanka needing to rebuild which Sangakkara and Marvan Atapattu (34) patiently set about doing with a 91 run partnership.
For New Zealand, Gillespie was the most successful bowler with 3-39 off his 10 overs.
Scoreboard
SRI LANKA:
W.U. Tharanga b Gillespie 22
S.T. Jayasuriya c Mason b Gillespie 70
M. Jayawardene c Fleming b Gillespie 0
K.C. Sangakkara c Taylor b Bond 79
M.S. Atapattu c McCullum b Adams 34
C.K. Kapugedera not out 10
M.F. Maharoof c Adams b Bond 21
W.P.U.J.C. Vaas not out 5
EXTRAS (LB-11, W-6, NB-4) 21
TOTAL (for six wkts, 50 overs) 262
FALL OF WKTS: 1-102, 2-102, 3-103, 4-194, 5-232, 6-256.
DID NOT BAT: C.R.D. Fernando, S.L. Malinga, M. Muralitharan.
BOWLING: Mason 10-1-62-0 (3w); Bond 10-2-47-2 (2nb, 2w); Gillespie 10-1-39-3 (2nb); Adams 9-2-53-1; Patel 9-0-41-0 (1w); McMillan 2-0-9-0.
NEW ZEALAND:
B.B. McCallum c Sangakkara b Maharoof 17
S.P. Fleming lbw Vaas 0
R.L. Taylor lbw Vaas 0
P.G. Fulton lbw Malinga 9
H.J.H. Marshall lbw Vaas 3
C.D. McMillan not out 29
A.R. Adams lbw Malinga 1
S.E. Bond c and b Malinga 2
M.R. Gillespie c Sangakkara b Fernando 0
J.S. Patel b Muralitharan 6
M.J. Mason lbw Muralitharan 1
EXTRAS (LB-2, W-1, NB-2) 5
TOTAL (all out, 26.3 overs) 73
FALL OF WKTS: 1-5, 2-17, 3-17, 4-25, 5-37, 6-39, 7-49, 8-54, 9-71.
BOWLING: Vaas 8-3-10-3; Malinga 8-3-14-3; Maharoof 4-0-27-2 (1nb, 1w); Fernando 4-1-13-1 (1nb); Muralitharan 2.3-0-7-2.
RESULT: Sri Lanka won by 189 runs.
UMPIRES: G.A. Baxter (New Zealand) and S.J. Davis (Australia).
TV UMPIRE: A.L. Hill (New Zealand).
MATCH REFEREE: J. Srinath (India).
MAN-OF-THE-MATCH: Sanath Jayasuriya.
FIRST MATCH: Napier, Sri Lanka won by seven wickets.
SECOND MATCH: Queenstown, New Zealand won by one wicket.
THIRD MATCH: Christchurch, New Zealand won by four wickets (D/L Method).
FIFTH MATCH: Hamilton (D/N), Jan 9.—Agencies
|
|
