New Zealand continued their impressive run in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 as they defeated Netherlands by 99 runs in their second match at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Monday. The Kiwis, who had thrashed England in their opening game, put up a clinical performance with both bat and ball to register their second consecutive win and move to the top of the points table.
Santner stars with bat and ball
The star of the show for New Zealand was Mitchell Santner, who scored a quick-fire 36 off 17 balls and then took five wickets for 59 runs to earn the Player of the Match award. Santner, who came in at No. 8, smashed three fours and two sixes to propel New Zealand to a formidable total of 322 for 7 after they were put in to bat by Netherlands. He then ripped through the Dutch middle and lower order with his left-arm spin, picking up the wickets of Bas de Leede, Scott Edwards, Saqib Zulfiqar, Roelof van der Merwe and Ryan Klein.
Conway and Young lead New Zealand's charge
New Zealand's batting was led by Devon Conway and Will Young, who scored 70 and 51 respectively. Conway, who had scored a century against England, continued his fine form with a fluent knock that included seven fours and two sixes. He added 83 runs for the second wicket with Young, who also played some attractive shots in his maiden World Cup fifty. Rachin Ravindra, who had also scored a ton in the first game, chipped in with 48 off 47 balls, while captain Tom Latham scored a brisk 53 off 46 ball.
Ackermann's lone fight for Netherlands
Netherlands' chase never really got going as they lost wickets at regular intervals. The only bright spot for them was Colin Ackermann, who scored a fighting 69 off 73 balls with five fours. He added 58 runs for the third wicket with de Leede, who made 18, and 49 runs for the fifth wicket with Tim Nidamanuru, who scored 21. However, none of the other batsmen could offer much resistance as Netherlands were bowled out for 223 in 46.3 overs.
Henry and Ravindra support Santner
Apart from Santner, New Zealand's bowling was also impressive. Matt Henry took three wickets for 40 runs, while Ravindra claimed one for 46. Trent Boult and Lockie Ferguson, who returned from injury, bowled economically but went wicketless. Glenn Phillips also bowled two overs of off-spin and gave away just 11 runs.
What next for both teams?
New Zealand have now won both their matches and are looking like one of the favourites to reach the semi-finals. They will face Bangladesh in their next match on October 14 at the same venue. Netherlands, on the other hand, have lost both their games and are in danger of being eliminated from the tournament. They will have to win their remaining three matches to have any chance of making it to the knockouts. Their next match is against Sri Lanka on October 15 at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur.
I hope you liked my blog post. If you have any feedback or suggestions, please let me know. 😊