A strong batting performance which will serve as a warning to all other teams in ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, took New Zealand to a win over England. The finalists of the 2019 edition kicked off their campaign with England, the defending champions, being the favourites. However, the Kiwis had other ideas as two centuries from Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra took them home comfortably.
Having won the toss, New Zealand heeded to pre-match reports and chose to bowl first. The Englishmen were able to put up a total of 282 runs on the board for the loss of nine wickets in their 50 overs. Joe Root top scored with 77 runs in 86 deliveries followed by skipper Jos Buttler who added 43 in 43 deliveries.
The English innings saw all batters score in double-digits, creating a record in the process. However, that was not enough as the New Zealand batters blew them away in the tournament opener at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Gujarat’s Ahmedabad.
Matt Henry was the pick of the bowlers for New Zealand, getting three wickets at an economy of just 3.70. Mitchell Santner and Glenn Phillips picked two wickets each, while Trent Boult and Rachin Ravindra got one each.
Coming in to bat, New Zealand lost their first wicket quickly. However, what transpired next was beyond the wildest dreams of England. Both Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra batted superbly and aggressively to play out the innings and take the match home. Conway scored 152, while Ravindra scored 123.
