Sequels in film deliver rarely, the same holds for sport. England found that out with its nine-wicket defeat on Thursday. The first half of the 2023 ODI World Cup opener at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad resembled the middle overs of an early-2000s ODIs, with a fall of quick wickets punctuated by rotation of strike and a smattering of big hits.
The match needed a moment to elevate it, and Devon Conway’s career-best unbeaten 152 and Rachin Ravindra’s 123, during a 283 chase, did just that. From the time Ravindra pulled a 148 kmph thunderbolt from Mark Wood for six, there was a feeling of the colour contrast being turned up. Ravindra punched off the front foot and the back foot and was dismissive against spin, carting a total of nine boundaries - four more than any England batter could manage - en route to his fifty.
What was transpiring at the other end was sheer wizardry too. Conway was reeling off shots of every variety in all directions, racking up an 83-ball 100. England bowlers were either too full or too short to him, which allowed Conway to pick his spot and pierce it at will. And by the time Ravindra racked up the fastest hundred for the Black Caps at an ODI World Cup, off 82 balls, the result for England was a depressing inevitability. They got over the line with 13.4 overs to spare, riding on a 273-run partnership - the fourth-highest in men’s World Cup history.
Earlier, batting first, Joe Root’s languid 86-ball 77, his fourth half-century since the last ODI World Cup, held the England innings together. Although he was clean-bowled, trying to reverse sweep a yorker from off-spinner Glenn Phillips (3-0-17-2), Root could well become Bazball’s spirit animal for this tournament: bold but not asinine.
After all, the line between bravado and stupidity can be wafer-thin. Harry Brook, replacing injured Ben Stokes, proved it when he gave into a sudden rush of adrenaline, having already smashed 14 off three balls, to get caught off a rank long-hop from left-arm spinner Ravindra —a greed whetted by five similar hit-me balls before that.
Moeen Ali’s promotion to counter left-arm spinners backfired when Phillips clean-bowled him. But Jos Buttler’s 43 provided a thrust, as he targetted the fourth bowler. The Kiwis were forced to extract 20 overs from batting all-rounders in the absence of an injured Lockie Ferguson. Ravindra and James Neesham struggled, conceding a combined 132 runs in 17 overs.
England’s punchy tail failed to wag, with Trent Boult, Matt Henry, and Mitchell Santner making crucial breakthroughs. Santner’s varied pace yielded 2 for 37 without conceding a boundary, while Henry mixed up his lengths effectively for his 3 for 48. England’s only consolation is it can try all over again when it meets Bangladesh in Dharamsala next Tuesday while New Zealand will hope to keep the momentum going against Netherlands next Monday in Hyderabad.
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