ICC T20 World Cup
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<p>Little Bangle batter was even celebrating after his 2nd four - obviously was already writing his own headlines as he "creams the next one over mid-wicket for 6". Bowler even served up rank poor deliveries to make the 2 singles required easy. Kudos to Dhoni, actually thought he was going to be too late but he judged it well.</p>
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<p>That Jasprit Bumrah (my current favourite cricket name) can certainly bowl a yorker - most consistent yorker bowler I have seen in a while</p> -
<p>Bangladesh is by far my hatiest team in cricket, - corrupt little fuckers who have enough resources (sure 99% are dirt poor and one decent rainstorm from the afterlife but the cricket people are rich) and have done nothing for 10 years, BPL is rotten even when they do sometimes pay players and every coach runs for the door after a short stint. Horrible little twats if you ask me.</p>
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<p>So the mother of all chokes brought too much joy from me</p>
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<p>Besides I really want an Aus Ind shitfight to decide the other semi-finalist</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Crucial" data-cid="566673" data-time="1458689637">
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<p>Surely the bowling mix is entirely down to the pitches? We got this aspect right in the first two games and others didn't.</p>
<p>If we move on to playing on better pitches then bring Boult and Southee back in but in reality they wouldn't be offering much more than what we are already getting.</p>
<p>Now we are qualified though, how does the format work? Is there an advantage in using the match fit guys and aim for a big win against the Bangles or can we give other players a chance to get some gametime?</p>
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<p>Yep, I agree. The only blip in execution was underestimating the skiddy sheen on that last pitch with Santner opening to a big lump slogger who we haven't seen much of.</p>
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<p>For the Bangles game it'll be interesting who they pick. Do players need a rest? probably not so the AB's and lots of teams have preached momentum, habitual winning and don't tamper unless there is a physical necessity. I see little point in giving T and T a bowl at this stage</p>
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<p>But</p>
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<p>The statistical chances of winning 6 T20's in a row is very low (does that matter? dunno). I'll put my faith in Hesson but a rained off match or even an against form loss wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. But the venue is the same as the Final, so perhaps a dress rehearsal if that isn't looking too far ahead.</p>
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<p>From Dylan Cleaver:</p>
<p><a data-ipb='nomediaparse' href='http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11610448'>http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11610448</a></p>
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<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">Ego is a fascinating concept as it relates to high-performance sport.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">The accepted wisdom is that all great sportsmen and women have to have a high-degree of ego to be successful in such an on-the-edge environment.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">Yet you watch how the Black Caps have turned themselves into the most consistent short-format team we've ever produced, and you come to the conclusion that they've done it in large part because they've managed to either suppress or strip away the individual ego. They live that mantra that there is no 'I' in team.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">If you're in the media, it can get a bit tiresome: the deflection of praise, the downplaying of individual achievement to highlight the "team effort", the All Black-like refusal to dwell on success in favour of looking ahead to the next game.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">It's easier to find quotable quantity surveyors.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">It's working though. Since New Year's Day, 2014, New Zealand have won 35 of 55 ODIs they have played, with three no results and a tie. That's a 64 per cent win record for a team that historically has won 44 per cent of matches played.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">In the same timeframe, they have won 14 of 22 T20Is. Again, that's 64 per cent and again it's considerably higher than their overall win-record of 51 per cent.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">With the shallowest talent pool of all the major nations, they have done this by defining roles and sticking to them. As counter-intuitive as this sounds, they have a team full of players willing to fail for the team.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">The World T20 in India has just reinforced that.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">Ross Taylor, one of the better strokemakers in New Zealand cricket history, is prepared to play the closer's role, where he's seldom going to get the chance to build big, headline-grabbing innings.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">Elliott is happy to shuffle up and down the order depending on the situation.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">Even Luke Ronchi, who's form has hardly been compelling of late, is willing to try to hit sixes from ball one, knowing that every time he fails it is more ammunition for those advocating a change of wicketkeeper batsman.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">This is a team where individuals appear happy to sacrifice success (if success is measured by statistics; and in cricket it usually is) for the greater good.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">Who knows, perhaps Elliott went back to his hotel room this morning and emptied the mini-bar after being shuffled down to No 7, where he faced one ball and had to act as a sacrificial runner off the last ball (he somehow got home), but you doubt it.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">Maybe Tim Southee and Trent Boult are secretly embarrassed to be wearing hi-vis vests on the sidelines when for so long they've been New Zealand's spearheads, but they don't show it.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">New Zealand have become a genuine limited overs power and a pool play force.<br>
There's just one hurdle to clear.</p>
<p style="font-size:16px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Calibri, Candara, Segoe, 'Segoe UI', Optima, Arial, sans-serif;">They have to win one of these things.</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote">Even Luke Ronchi, who's form has hardly been compelling of late, is willing to try to hit sixes from ball one, knowing that every time he fails it is more ammunition for those advocating a change of wicketkeeper batsman.</blockquote>
<p>Worth noting for some on here who actually post T20 batting averages as evidence of anything.</p> -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="KiwiPie" data-cid="566823" data-time="1458772830">
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<p>Little Bangle batter was even celebrating after his 2nd four - obviously was already writing his own headlines as he "creams the next one over mid-wicket for 6". Bowler even served up rank poor deliveries to make the 2 singles required easy. Kudos to Dhoni, actually thought he was going to be too late but he judged it well.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>That Jasprit Bumrah (my current favourite cricket name) can certainly bowl a yorker - most consistent yorker bowler I have seen in a while</p>
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<p>Someone tell the Bangles this is how it is done..</p>
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<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="KiwiPie" data-cid="566903" data-time="1458793739">
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<p>Worth noting for some on here who actually post T20 batting averages as evidence of anything.</p>
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<p>I've pretty agressively advocated dropping from the ODI side, but not the T20, Tho' I have pointed out how shit his form is. And it is. T20 he's facing feck all balls & is more likley than anyone to connect. If he keeps on batting 7 or 8 & scoring 12 off 5, that easily good enough. Its not like the old days when everyone opened with their keeper. Aussie have Neville batting way down at 9ish too.</p> -
<p>Really looking forward to watching the Australia v Pakistan game tonight. </p>
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<p>Only thing is that Fanpass isn't even showing it. Instead they have table tennis and some stupid golf highlights show. What a ripoff sky. Sort your shit out please Sky you bunch of fluffy rabbits. </p> -
<p>So we're through and will be joined by either Australia or India. I'm pretty sure I'd rather see Australia removed from the equation - I think we'd find them hardest to beat in a final - but I think it's going to be the Indians who miss out.</p>
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<p>On the other side, Windies is through and England is favourite to join them - their equation is simple - beat Sri Lanka. So most likely we get a semifinal against England - though that spot is far from set in stone.</p>
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<p>I happened to see a few of the later overs of the SA innings and thought the Windies ground fielding was pretty sloppy. Some pretty useful bowling though.</p>
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<p>It's all a bit of a crapshoot, but I'm inclined to think the three best teams are all in our pool.</p> -
Yep Aussie got the job done comfortably and will be full of confidence now, damnit. They showed some stats on Watson that had his SR at around 150 odd in the power play, and 220 odd at the death - why the hell was he opening again?<br><br>
We have the Bangles tonight and I am bloody glad it's not a must win game, as they've had success against us in that part of the world previously. No need to change anything from our perspective, T20 is not a gruelling form of the game so we just need to keep on doing what is working for us. -
<p>Fortunately NZ has a very good NRR so should finish top of Group 2 irrespective of the Bangles result. Kane and co would want to continue that winning momentum though. I think we'd rather play England than WI in the SF, where one of those Gayle innings could decide the outcome.</p>
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<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Crucial" data-cid="567386" data-time="1458983397"><p>
Caps batting first. Guppy sitting this one out. Nichols playing</p></blockquote>Booooo!<br>
Deliberate ploy to make another batter stand up and make the big fast runs? -
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Gunner" data-cid="567391" data-time="1458984892"><p>Booooo!<br>
Deliberate ploy to make another batter stand up and make the big fast runs?</p></blockquote>
Guppy had a tight hamstring last match, so probably giving it a rest for the semi. -
<br><br><blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Higgins" data-cid="567393" data-time="1458985296"><p>Reasonable start Gunner. NZ are 158 without loss after two overs</p></blockquote>
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That is pretty reasonable. We'd be expected to win easily from there I guess. -
<p>Now 23 without loss after three overs. You should be able to follow things on cricinfo.com for ball to ball written commentary if you want.</p>
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<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Bones" data-cid="567398" data-time="1458985506">
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That is pretty reasonable. We'd be expected to win easily from there I guess.</p>
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<p> Yeah a world record run rate of about 14 runs a ball! A sad case of typing in the dark I'm afraid. Thanks for pointing it out, something that I have now corrected.</p>