da realsbet： Australia broke their semi-final jinx at the Champions Trophy with a34-run triumph over a spirited New Zealand at Mohali to enter their firstfinal
da marjack bet： The Bulletin by S Rajesh01-Nov-2006
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Big wicket: Australia celebrate as Stephen Fleming walks back to the hutch © Getty Images
Australia broke their semi-final jinx at the Champions Trophy with a34-run triumph over a spirited New Zealand at Mohali to enter their firstfinal. In a game which turned out to be a lot closer than expected, New Zealand,seemingly down and out at 35 for 6 chasing 241, fought back with anincredible 103-run stand between Daniel Vettori and Jacob Oram. Vettorimade 79, his second-highest score in ODIs, but even his effort wasn’tenough to make up for the shocking collapse of their top order.As has been the norm in this tournament, this pitch was another on whichrun-scoring wasn’t easy. The New Zealand bowlers showed that after StephenFleming won the toss, as Kyle Mills – who finished with 4 for 38 – reducedAustralia to 4 for 2 by the third over. Half-centuries by Ricky Pontingand Andrew Symonds – both scored 58 – lifted Australia to a competitive240, but that seemed more than sufficient when New Zealand’s top order wasblown away by Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee and Nathan Bracken.Perhaps wary of the fact that this was the same pitch on which SouthAfrica’s bowlers bundled Pakistan out for 89, New Zealand’s approach atthe start was to play cautiously and see off the new-ballchallenge posed by Lee and McGrath. They survived five overs withoutlosing a wicket, then lost six in a heap as their technical deficiencieswere horribly exposed.McGrath began the slide, defeating Lou Vincent outside off like he hasdone countless batsmen in his distinguished career. A peach of a deliveryfrom Lee – pitching just off, and ducking in at a furious pace – was fartoo much for Nathan Astle to handle, while Hamish Marshall soon becameMcGrath’s second victim. Fleming shaped well, then edged a drive, whilePeter Fulton and Brendon McCullum were soon swept away as well.The crowd at Mohali would have been preparing for a very early finish, butVettori and Oram had other ideas. Australia had an early chance to nip thepartnership, but Michael Hussey made a mess of a regulation slip catchwhen Vettori was on 5. Neither batsman needed a second invitation as theyslowly got on top of the attack, as the pronounced seam movement graduallyeased. The fast bowlers, so potent at the start, suddenly lookedinsipid as Oram and Vettori found the gaps at will. Oram stood tall andclipped the ball effortlessly through the on side, while Vettori preferredto move to leg and squeeze it through backward point and third man.The runs came thick and fast, the asking rate hovered at around six anover, and Ponting was forced to turn to the spin of Symonds, who finallybroke the stand, turning it enough to beat Oram and have him stumped.Vettori kept the fight going, audaciously shuffling outside off andclipping it to leg when Ponting packed the areas square on the off side.Even after he was bowled off the pads, Mills and Bond continued the fight,adding 26 for the last wicket before finally succumbing.New Zealand fought hard with the bat, and they were similarly competitivein the field earlier in the afternoon, as all the bowlers except JamesFranklin gave the Australian top order plenty to ponder about. However, unlike NewZealand’s shockingly brittle top order, Australia had the class to combatthe conditions.
Andrew Symonds boosted Australia in the middle overs with 58 in as many balls © Getty Images
After their openers left early, the rest of the batsmen all contributedcrucial knocks, with Ponting and Symonds leading the way. The key wasregular partnerships – the third, fourth and fifth wickets put together66, 54 and 65, ensuring that New Zealand never had the luxury of bowlingto two new batsmen during the middle overs.Ponting and Damien Martyn – whose innings of 26 was worth a lot more -started the recovery process. The early part of his knock was patchy, butonce Ponting got into his stride the Mohali crowd was treated to somegorgeous strokeplay, with his driving down the ground being absolutelyexhilarating. When Martyn was trapped on the sweep, Michael Hussey,promoted to No.5, took over, playing second fiddle perfectly to anincreasingly aggressive Ponting.Fleming marshalled his resources well, shuffling his bowlers around anddelaying the third Powerplay when Ponting and Martyn were tonking it allaround, but Australia’s depth in batting ensured that New Zealand neverseized the initiative. Ponting’s dismissal, for example, brought Symondsto the middle, which meant little respite for New Zealand as heimmediately got stuck into Vettori. A straight hit over long-on for sixwas followed by a slog-sweep for four as Vettori leaked 28 in his lastfour overs after conceding 13 in his first six.Australia lost their way in the last ten overs, though – despite havingsix wickets in hand, they only managed 52 as New Zealand finished stronglyin the field. A total of 240 promised a competitive match, and despite thewashout at the start, there was enough drama to keep the Mohali crowdentertained till late at night.How they were outAustraliaShane Watson c Fulton b Mills 0 (3 for 1)
Fetched one from outside off and top-edged a pull to mid-offAdam Gilchrist c Oram b Mills 3 (4 for 2)
Lobbed a flick to square legDamien Martyn lbw b Vettori 26 (70 for 3)
Missed a sweep and trapped plumb in frontRicky Ponting c Vettori b Mills 58 (123 for 4)
Miscued a pull to mid-onMichael Hussey c Marshall b Franklin 35 (188 for 5)
Short ball cut straight to pointAndrew Symonds b Bond 58 (211 for 6)
Shuffled too far across; leg stump pushed backMichael Clarke c Vettori b Mills 14 (220 for 7)
Slogged to third manBrett Lee b Bond 5 (223 for 8)
Made room to flay and missedMitchell Johnson run out 3 (236 for 9)
Direct hit by the bowler at the non-striker’s endNew ZealandLou Vincent c Ponting b McGrath 1 (16 for 1)
In the corridor, edged to second slipNathan Astle b Lee 0 (20 for 2)
Perfect indipper, crashed between bat and pad into middle stumpHamish Marshall c Gilchrist b McGrath 5 (30 for 3)
Tried to cut, and edged to the keeperStephen Fleming c Ponting b Bracken 15 (30 for 4)
Full delivery swinging away, edged to second slipPeter Fulton b McGrath 2 (34 for 5)
Shouldered arms to a straight ball on off stumpBrendon McCullum c Martyn b Bracken 1 (35 for 6)
Inside-edged a flick to mid-onJacob Oram st Gilchrist b Symonds 43 (138 for 7)
Daniel Vettori b Johnson 79 (180 for 9)
Kyle Mills c Gilchrist b Lee 21 (206 all out)
