Last Updated on 4 weeks by Charbel Coorey
Australia have won their eighth T20I out of their last nine, with a solid 85 by Mitch Marsh leading his team to a 1-0 series lead over New Zealand in difficult conditions in Mount Maunganui.
It was a magnificent show of power-hitting by the Australian captain. He smashed nine fours and six sixes in his 43-ball stay, putting his team in a commanding position by the end of the powerplay. By the time he was dismissed, Australia were 157/3 in the 15th over and cruising towards the 182-run target.
Marsh and fellow opener Travis Head put on 67 in 5.3 overs to kickstart Australia’s chase. In the post-match presentation, Marsh spoke of the importance of getting off to a good start and setting the tone for the strong batting lineup to follow.
“It’s really important in a three-match series to start off with a win. Nice to contribute. Heady and I have a great relationship off the field and tonight was a lot of fun with him,” said the Australian captain.
Earlier, New Zealand found themselves in massive trouble after just 10 balls. The hosts fell to 6/3, so the fact they were able to reach 181/6 was a fine effort. Central to that was Tim Robinson, who smashed his first-ever T20I century to give his team something to bowl at. He finished with an unbeaten 106 off 66 balls; an innings sure to give him confidence as New Zealand look for strong batting options for next year’s T20 World Cup.
“Tim Robinson played beautifully. He and Daryl [Mitchell] took the game on from a difficult position,” said Michael Bracewell in the post-match presentation.
NZ vs AUS 1st T20I Reactions: Marsh 85 too good as Australia smash New Zealand
Australia reached the target in just 16.3 overs. Along with Marsh, Travis Head (31 off 18), Matt Short (29 off 18) and Tim David (21* off 12) were also impactful. In the end, Australia’s dominance in the powerplay with bat and ball proved vital.
“In the powerplays in both innings we fell behind in the game,” Bracewell said. “We did well as a batting unit to put a competitive total on the board. Ultimately Mitch and Travis took the game away from us.”
Here are some of the reactions to Australia’s resounding win in cold and windy conditions in Mount Maunganui.
The second T20I will be played at the same venue on Friday. The third, also at the same venue, is scheduled for Saturday.
