Last Updated on 5 years by Charbel Coorey

CWC 2019 – Australia v New Zealand: 5 key talking points. AUS vs NZ: 5 key talking points from their 2019 World Cup match.

The much-hyped Trans-Tasman battle, predicted to leave us on the edge of our seats, turned out to be quite one-sided.

When either team was on top, they were so dominant that there was never really an amazing battle brewing. It began with New Zealand tormenting the Australian top order before the CWC 2019 leaders flexed their muscle and dominated the rest of the match.

This game had its similarities to the 2003 World Cup match in Port Elizabeth. Australia found themselves in significant trouble as a result of Shane Bond’s brilliance, before Michael Bevan and Andy Bichel executed a rescue mission similar to that against England nine days earlier. Then, Brett Lee took five wickets in his later spell to dismantle New Zealand. Here, New Zealand had Australia in all sorts of trouble, before Alex Carey and Usman Khawaja rescued the cause before Mitchell Starc took five of his own to seal the win.

Here are five talking points from Australia’s fifth straight win in CWC 2019.

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1. Alex Carey should bat ahead of Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell

I will hold up my hand up and say I doubted the impact Alex Carey would have at number seven. He is typically a top order player, focused on playing with style that could have hampered Australia’s finishing in CWC 2019.

However, he has been one of Australia’s best players in this tournament. His batting has elevated Australia on numerous occasions, with the latest a run-a-ball 71 on a pitch where everyone else struggled to get going. Indeed, man of the match Alex Carey has made a significant case to move up the order.

This is especially as Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis are out of form. Stoinis had a great opportunity to bat long and find form. It didn’t work. Glenn Maxwell, worryingly, came in with 30 overs to go to help set the innings up. It didn’t work. What this game showed us is that:

• Usman Khawaja, despite the luck he had, is important for when early wickets fall.
• Alex Carey must bat ahead of Maxwell and Stoinis, especially before the 35-over mark.

Carey has been in outstanding touch, striking the ball beautifully on both sides of the wicket. He has 244 runs in seven innings at 61.00, with a strike rate of 110.60 in CWC 2019. Australia need to take full advantage of this as the business end of the tournament arrives.

Also read: What on EARTH was Afghanistan captain Gulbadin Naib thinking?

2. New Zealand’s batting continues to worry

Colin Munro, with an average of 25 in 57 ODIs, showed very little signs of improving that in CWC 2019. So, Henry Nicholls came in for him.

It would have been a bit unfair to ask Nicholls to fire right away against an in-form attack, but unfortunately for New Zealand, his leg-side strangle was the only ‘unlucky’ dismissal of their day. Their batting effort was filled with loose strokeplay, with their panic with just over 20 overs remaining a sign that they weren’t quite in the right head-space.

Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor tried to get going. They couldn’t. The pressure was building and New Zealand were struggling to rotate. Much like their 4-1 defeat to India earlier in the year. And, what did I literally say about Colin de Grandhomme after the Pakistan game? A ‘thinking cricketer’ hit a friendly Steve Smith delivery straight down long off’s throat in his first ball.

New Zealand can’t bat the way they are now if they are to win this World Cup. More is needed from Guptill, and with Nicholls a potentially good foil, a strong platform is what they badly need.

Download: Making cricket an interactive experience! Discover Harrison Cricket Apps ODI version. For full screenshots, click here.

3. Mitchell Starc is one of the all-time great ODI bowlers

83 matches. 169 wickets. An average of just 20.

Sometimes, stats don’t always tell the story. It is actually often the case with Mitchell Starc in Test Cricket, where tailend wickets often pad his numbers to look better than his performance actually was.

However, his ODI numbers are indicative of just how good he is in this format. After leading Australia to World Cup success in 2015, Starc is on a mission to do again, going past the 20-wicket mark in just eight matches in CWC 2019. He has won games for Australia by dismissing quality batsmen along the way – Chris Gayle, Kusal Perera, Tamim Iqbal, Joe Root, Ben Stokes and Kane Williamson are some of the top players he has got the better of, in addition to that crucial wicket of Wahab Riaz against Pakistan.

Starc is now just two wickets behind Glenn McGrath’s record World Cup tally of 26 back in 2007. Given the way he is going, he is well on track to beat it. A magnificent white-ball bowler.

4. Mixed day for New Zealand in the field

Martin Guptill dropped two catches (one difficult and one less so) as New Zealand began magnificently. Unlike England against Australia, New Zealand pitched the ball up early, allowing the ball to swing. Then, with Lockie Ferguson, New Zealand employed a mixture of shorter and fuller balls, with out-of-the-box field placements that saw one of the catches of the tournament from Martin Guptill.

However, after such a great start tactically, New Zealand fell away. The question has to be asked – would it have been worth bringing Trent Boult back for a two-over burst with Australia at 92/5? Did the Black Caps relax just that little bit? Is it time to bring Tim Southee in after not using Ish Sodhi much throughout the innings?

With a mix of spectacular catches (Guptill, Neesham) and drops (Latham, Guptill), New Zealand produced a fielding and tactical effort that needs some polishing.

5. Trent Boult creates history

Trent Boult hasn’t quite picked up the bagful of wickets expected of him in CWC 2019. However, he has his name in the history books, becoming the first ever New Zealand bowler to take a World Cup hat-trick. It was just reward for Boult after a testing opening spell, ensuring Australia couldn’t get any further potentially crucial runs in the final over.

In the end, it didn’t affect the result. However, it was a nice achievement from a fine bowler.

Also read: What on EARTH was Afghanistan captain Gulbadin Naib thinking?

Download: Making cricket an interactive experience! Discover Harrison Cricket Apps ODI version. For full screenshots, click here.

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