Australia holds up top position by beating New Zealand
Australia is a completely different team when they play the World Cup. Regardless of the odds against them, they always turn up with some spectacular performances in this event. This time was no different. They became the first team to qualify into the semi-final with two games still left to be played. Moreover, Australia holds up the top position of the point table by beating New Zealand in a glorious match at the Lord’s.
Australia holds up top position by beating New Zealand
It all started with Australia winning the toss and decided to bat first. Their opener pair did not manage to score much of the runs. Usman Khawaja came to bat at 3rd and took the radar at his hand. He single-handedly defended the Kiwi bowlers and managed to score 88 runs facing 129 balls. Alex Carey also added 71 runs from 72 balls and became the man of the match. After 50 overs, they gave New Zealand a decent target of 243 runs losing 9 of their wickets. Though Australia is confidently at the semifinals, it is a concern for them that both Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis still did not deliver the runs up to the expectations.
New Zealand at first seemed to corner Australia when the Aussie’s scorecard was 92/5. Veteran bowler Trent Boult alone took 4 wickets sparing 51 runs. Within this 4 wicket, he claimed a hat trick as well. His fellow teammate James Neesham and Lockie Ferguson both picked two wickets each.
When New Zealand came to bat, they were faced with the mighty Aussie bowlers who packed the whole New Zealand team within 43.4 overs. New Zealand somehow managed to score 157 runs in that time. None of the Kiwis managed to score a single 50. It ended up being a bit of a walk in the park for Australia, who did really well to break down New Zealand’s batting. Alex Carey and Mitchell Starc’s performances were top-notch and will provide Australia a real boost heading into the semi-finals. The incredible Starc alone picked 5 of the Kiwi batsmen by giving only 26 runs. It is this tournament best bowling performance.
