Taylor steers Kiwis to victory over Pakistan

Chris DHAMBARAGE reporting from Pallekelle

Dynamic middle order batsman Ross Taylor hammered a swashbuckling unbeaten century as New Zealand thrashed Pakistan by 110 runs in their crucial ICC 2011 Cricket World Cup Group ‘A’ match played under lights at the Pallekelle International Stadium in Kandy yesterday.

The dashing right hander playing on his 27th birthday produced a dazzling batting performance as the Kiwis went on to make a formidable 302 runs for seven wickets from their 50 overs after they had won the toss and elected to bat first in the maiden One Day International at this stadium. Pakistan in reply were in trouble from the beginning having slumped to 66 for 6 and they eventually folded up for 192 runs in the 42nd over with Abdul Razaaq making a top score of 62 from 74 balls inclusive of nine boundaries.

Razaaq in fact added 66 for the ninth wicket along with Umar Gul which brought some respectability to the Pakistan total at the end. Taylor playing in his 103rd One Day International delivered a brutal batting display by hoisting fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar for three sixes in the 47th over with all his hits clearing the boundary by more than 30 metres. In the penultimate over bowled by Abdul Razzaq, Taylor plundered another 30 runs including three maximums.

Taylor single handed turned the game in favour of New Zealand while putting a 50 run stand for the seventh wicket with all rounder Jacob Oram from just 15 deliveries. The Kiwis dominated the Pakistan bowling so much that they collected exactly one hundred runs from the last five overs. Taylor went on to make a career best unbeaten 131 from 124 deliveries studded with as many as seven sixes and eight boundaries. This was a tremendous effort from New Zealand who never looked like even getting past the 250 run mark at one stage.

Taylor with his seven sixes in the innings also set up a record by overcoming the previous highest number of sixes which was six held by Ireland’s Kevin O’ Brien during his 63 ball 113 against England on March 2. The Kiwis in fact had a very slow start to their innings and had reached 100 for 4 at the half way stage of the game. This was mainly due to some excellent bowling from the Pakistan spinners who controlled the proceedings during the power play overs.

This was after their main strike bowler Shoaib Akhtar had struck in the very first over of the innings that gave Pakistan the much needed initiative. However Jami How joined opener Martin Guptil and the pair steadied the innings to a certain extent with a stubborn batting performance.

In fact How labored for as many as 29 deliveries for his four runs before first change bowler Umar Gul also got his act together well in his opening spell to leave New Zealand in a spot of bother at 55 for 2.

New Zealand then consolidated their position thereafter with inform batsman Martin Guptil and Ross Taylor adding 50 runs for the third wicket from 86 deliveries. Guptil went on to hit a sold 57 from 86 deliveries inclusive of six boundaries.

SCORECARD
	NEW ZEALAND

M. Guptill b Afridi 		  57
B. McCullum b Akhtar 		  06
J. How lbw b Gul 		  04
R. Taylor not out 		 131
J. Franklin lbw b Hafeez 	  01
S. Styris lbw b Gul 		  28
N. McCullum b Gul 		  19
J. Oram c Gul b Rehman 		  25
K. Mills not out 		  07
Extras: (lb10, nb3, w11) 	  24
TOTAL:(for seven wkts; 50 overs) 302

Fall of wickets: 1-8 (B. McCullum), 2-55 (How), 3-112 (Guptill), 4-113 
		(Franklin), 5-175 (Styris), 6-210 (N. McCullum), 7-295 (Oram).


		Bowling: Akhtar 9-0-70-1 (nb3, w3), Rehman 10-0-60-1 (w1), Gul 10-1-32-3 
		(w2),
	Razzaq 4-0-49-0 (w4), Afridi 10-0-55-1, Hafeez 7-0-26-1 (w1).
 
		
	PAKISTAN


Mohammad Hafeez lbw b Southee 		 05
Ahmed Shahzad lbw b Mills 		 10
Kamran Akmal c Taylor b Southee 	 08
Younis Khan b Mills 			 00
Misbah-ul-Haq c Styris b Southee 	 07
Umar Akmal c Oram b N. McCullum 	 38
Shahid Afridi b Oram 			 17
Abdul Razzaq c Oram b Styris 		 62
Abdur Rehman lbw b N. McCullum 		 01
Uar Gul not out 			 34
Shoaib Akhtar c N. McCullum b Styris 	 00
Extras: (lb6, w4) 			 10
TOTAL: (all out; 41.4 overs) 		192
Fall of wickets: 1-5 (Hafeez), 2-23 (Shahzad), 3-23 (Younis), 4-23 
		(Kamran),
		 5-45 (Misbah), 6-66 (Afridi), 7-102 (Umar), 8-125 (Rehman), 
		9-191 (Razzaq), 10-192 (Akhtar).
Bowling: Mills 8-1-43-2, Southee 8-1-25-3, Oram 10-1-47-1, Franklin 
		5-0-26-0, N. McCullum 6-0-28-2 (w4), Styris 4.4-0-17-2.