The last few weeks have been challenging for Kane Williamson with questions raised about his strike rate at No.3, while batting in the middle-overs.
At a sunny Adelaide Oval on Friday afternoon, Williamson played a captain’s knock – 61 off 35 balls (5x4, 3x6) – as New Zealand defeated Ireland by 35 runs to stay at the top of Group 1. The World Cup’s second hattrick by Josh Little (three for 22) failed to help the Irish fortunes.
Put into bat, Finn Allen and Devon Conway started cautiously against a disciplined Irish attack. They took their time to adapt to the conditions and the pace, before forging a 52-run opening partnership.
Allen, who started off the tournament with a dashing innings against Australia a fortnight ago, hammered leggie Gareth Delany for three fours in the fourth over. A six and a four followed off pacer Mark Adair before the latter caught him at mid-off on the next ball.
Conway stood in a 44-run stand with Williamson but found it difficult to accelerate. But Williamson came out of his comfort zone and played an uncharacteristic knock, hitting Fionn Hand for a couple of fours and a six. His change in approach – observed during the Kiwis net session on the eve of the game – was brought to the middle as he used some muscle to get on top of the Irish attack.
New Zealand lost a bit of track in the middle with Delany taking two wickets, including that of in-form Glenn Phillips (17). But Williamson held fort to build a 60-run partnership with Daryl Mitchell, and in the 18th over of the innings, the captain brought up his fifty with a six off McCarthy. He followed it up with a four and slammed another 91-metre six over deep midwicket.
New Zealand was cruising at 174 for three in the 19th over when left-arm quick Little dismissed Williamson, James Neesham and Mitchell Santner off successive balls to join UAE’s Karthik Meiyappan in the hat-trick takers club in this tournament.
New Zealand ended its innings at 185 for six and eventually restricted the Irishmen to 150 for nine.
Against a top-quality New Zealand bowling line-up, Ireland openers Andrew Balbirnie and Paul Stirling started off perfectly, reaching 68 for no loss in eight overs. Captain Balbirnie, who has been in prime form, hit a couple of sixes off Ish Sodhi in the seventh over before falling to Santner. In the first ball of the next over, Sodhi cleaned up Stirling to dent the momentum.
After the openers departed, Ireland needed a steady partnership, but with Santner and Sodhi tightening the noose, the middle-order failed to convert the start.
Lorcan Tucker, who had a memorable outing against Australia in the previous game, offered a catch to Allen at long-off, mistiming Sodhi’s leg-break outside the off. George Dockrell did try to steady the ship, but that wasn’t adequate for the Irish.
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