PALLEKELE: Birthday boy Ross Taylor hit a career-best century to lift New Zealand to an emphatic 302-7 in their key World Cup Group A match against Pakistan at the new Pallekele stadium on Tuesday.
Taylor, who had a lucky escape when Pakistan keeper Kamran Akmal missed an easy catch before the batsman had scored, celebrated his 27th birthday in style by scoring an unbeaten 131 for his fourth one-day hundred.
Akmal also dropped Taylor in the same Shoaib Akhtar over when he had made just eight.
Taylor made the most of his good fortune and ran riot in the 47th over of the innings, hitting paceman Akhtar for two boundaries and three sixes — 28 runs in all — to reach his first World Cup hundred off 117 deliveries.
He then hit two boundaries and three sixes to take 30 off Abdul Razzaq’s 49th over, helping New Zealand add 100 in the last five overs.
Taylor added a blistering 85 for the seventh wicket with Jacob Oram (25 off just nine balls, with three sixes and a boundary) off just 22 balls to punish a hapless Pakistan bowling attack.
Taylor’s previous best of 128 not out came against Sri Lanka at Napier in 2006.
In all he hit eight boundaries and seven sixes during his aggressive 124-ball knock.
Taylor added 57 for the third wicket with Martin Guptill (57) and 62 for the fifth wicket with Scott Styris (28).
Akhtar had provided Pakistan’s breakthrough as early as the fourth ball when he bowled Brendon McCullum for six.
Pakistan had opened the bowling with left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman, the first time they had used such a tactic since April 1998 when Mohammad Hussain opened against South Africa in a one-dayer at Centurion.
It was paceman Umar Gul (3-32) who dismissed Jamie How (four) to make it 55-2, leaving the repair work to Taylor and Guptill.
Both team made two changes each from their last game. New Zealand left out the unwell Jesse Ryder and paceman Hamish Bennett and brought in How and Oram.
Pakistan brought back Akhtar and Rehman from their line-up against Canada.
Pakistan: Shahid Afridi (capt), Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, Kamran Akmal, Younis Khan, Umar Akmal, Abdul Razzaq, Abdur Rehman, Shoaib Akhtar, Umar Gul, Ahmed Shahzad
New Zealand: Daniel Vettori (capt), Brendon McCullum (wkt), Martin Guptill, Jamie How, Ross Taylor, James Franklin, Scott Styris, Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Tim Southee, Jacob Oram.
Umpires: Daryl Harper (AUS) and Nigel Llong (ENG)
TV umpire: Ian Gould (ENG)
Match referee: Chris Broad (ENG)
Pitch conditions: This is the unused pitch at a stadium where the only international match, a Test between Sri Lanka and the West Indies, was played, but not finished due to rain, in December last year. The pitch looks brown without traces of grass, but has good bounce and will be quicker at the start.
It will help strokeplay.
No comments:
Post a Comment