Conway, Ravindra demolish England in opening game | England vs New Zealand | CWC 2023

The first game of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 saw England and New Zealand facing off. It was total domination by the Black Caps as they outclassed the opposition in all the departments. 

The match took place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad and it saw over 500 runs being scored. England, after being asked to bat first managed 282 for nine whereas New Zealand chased the target with nine wickets to spare in 36.2 just overs.

England came out with an attacking mindset as Jonny Bairstow (33:35b, 4x4, 1x6) and Dawid Malan (14:24b, 2x4) played some strokes at the start. But they couldn’t carry and played false strokes that saw them both back in the hut in quick succession of time. Harry Brook (25:16b, 4x4, 1x6) threw his wicket away and then Moeen Ali also perished which left England clattering at 118 for four. Joe Root (77:86b, 4x4, 1x6), who came to bat at No.3, looked good and played some sensational shots. He along with skipper Jos Buttler (43:42b, 2x4, 2x6) added 70 runs for the fifth wicket that brought the defending champion back into the game. However, after that England lost wickets in quick succession but vital contributions from Liam Livingstone (20:22b, 3x4) along with others powered England to a total of 282 for nine. For New Zealand, Matt Henry picked three wickets whereas Glenn Phillips and Mitchell Santner also bagged two wickets each.

Chasing the target, New Zealand didn’t have an ideal start as Will Young bagged a golden duck. But after that, it was all about Rachin Ravindra and Devon Conway as they made a mockery of the England bowling line-up and made them look clueless. Both the batters played their shots and took the game away from England. They added an unbroken 273 runs for the second wicket, which is the highest by New Zealand in the World Cup, to take their team home by nine wickets and kick start their campaign on high.

Match Summary
England: 289-9 (50)
Fall of wickets: 1-40 (Dawid Malan-7.4 ov), 2-64 (Jonny Bairstow-12.5 ov), 3-94 (Harry Brook-16.6 ov), 4-118 (Moeen Ali-21.2 ov), 5-188 (Jos Buttler-33.2 ov), 6-221 (Liam Livingstone-38.5 ov), 7-229 (Joe Root-41.1 ov), 8-250 (Chris Woakes-44.6 ov), 9-252 (Sam Curran-45.4 ov)

New Zealand: 283-1 (36.2)
Fall of wickets: 1-10 (Will Young, 1.1 ov)

SCORECARD

Match Stats

Playing XI
England: Jonny Bairstow, Dawid Malan, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jos Buttler (captain & wicket-keeper), Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood

New Zealand: Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (captain & wicket-keeper), Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Matt Henry, Trent Boult

Match Details
Toss: New Zealand, elected to field
Venue: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
Start time: 0830 hrs GMT
Match officials: Kumar Dharmasena, Nitin Menon (On-field Umpires); Paul Wilson (TV Umpire); Sharfuddoula (Reserve Umpire); Javagal Srinath (Match-referee)