Last two overs SL need 19 off 12 balls... very gettable in a T20, but... they are 7 wickets down

I HOPE SL do it... IMO NZ did NOT post a good enough score, and... IMO.... NZ bowlers have got away with blatant bad bowling... obvious wides... I think Boult got 3 wickets off such balls, and many others were overlooked by umpires.

_________________
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___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

13 required off last over

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

9 required off last 2 balls..... 4 and 6 will do

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

DANG... they got the 4, but not the 6


New Zealand won

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Next T20 is on Sunday (local time)

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Homegrown Pitch Report

Since I am here in Auckland my assessment of the weather is.....

If a game was due to start right now... I think there would be a delay. It is not raining now, but it was yesterday and last night. Eden Park does have excellent drainage and technology to dry the pitch... but at the moment it is overcast and so no sun to help dry the field. However.. things are improving, the sun is about to shine

They could well start a game today at 3:00PM.. and if these conditions hold... should be no problem starting on time tomorrow.

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

And... today's the day....Weather?

Overcast, but no actual rain now or for the past day.. so things looking good for a game of cricket this afternoon (still 8 hours away)

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Sri Lanka play for pride, and top ranking

http://www.espncricinfo.com/new-zealand ... 59701.html




ICC Rankings - T20I
(8 January 2016)

http://www.espncricinfo.com/rankings/co ... 11271.html

1. Sri Lanka
2. West Indies
3. Australia
4. England
5. South Africa
6. Pakistan
7. New Zealand
8. India
9. Afghanistan
10. Bangladesh
11. Hong Kong
12. Scotland
13. Netherlands
14. Zimbabwe
15. Ireland

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

New Zealand prepping Taylor for WT20 finishing role

http://www.espncricinfo.com/new-zealand ... 59683.html



All I can say is .... If Taylor is the answer it is a fucking stupid question

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___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Williamson won the toss... decided to BOWL

He says with covers having been on for several days there may be something in the pitch to assist bowlers early on .

Sri Lanka say they would have bowled if they had the choice.

It REALLY comes down to what any team prefers.. set a total or chase.

IMO........
Unless there are some demons in the wicket..... any team needs to score around 200. Set a big target.. make an exciting game of it, regardless of who ultimately wins.

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

One of reasons I dont much like T20 is that although it is "exciting" when batsmen are hitting lots of boundaries, when it doesn't come off (often) it just becomes batsmen playing poorly and going out in succession. No particular bowling skill evident.. just batsmen playing poorly... being caught mainly.
SL will struggle to make 120 the way they are going.... to make any sort of exciting spectacle of this game .. NZ will need to reach the low total in say 10 - 15 overs?

Having said all that... Mathews is doing a great job..... SL need a couple of other players to stick with him.

_________________
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___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Innings Break

Sri Lanka 142/8 (20/20 ov)

Target for NZ... 143

Well.. Mathews gave the innings some respectability....

I still think that if NZ want to entertain the crowd they should come out firing and make the total with overs to spare

_________________
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___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

NZ won...

In STYLE.. good to see

In 10 overs.. as I suggested... entertainment, but also THAT is the way Teams need to bat in a modern T20I

Sri Lanka 142/8 (20/20 ov)
New Zealand 147/1 (10/20 ov)


And they didn't even use their "ace".. Taylor

BTW Guptill's NZ record for fastest 50 (off 19 balls) only lasted 20 mins... Munro did it in 14 balls

Third highest in WORLD fastest 50's.

_________________
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___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

That Wraps it up for the Siri Lankan Tour of NZ, but Pakistan are here for a thrashing now

_________________
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___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Oh dear Siri lanka dropped from 1st to third.. NZ remains the same (7th)

ICC Rankings - T20I
(10 January 2016)

http://www.espncricinfo.com/rankings/co ... 11271.html

1. West Indies
2. Australia
3. Sri Lanka
4. England
5. South Africa
6. Pakistan
7. New Zealand
8. India
9. Afghanistan
10. Bangladesh
11. Hong Kong
12. Scotland
13. Netherlands
14. Zimbabwe
15. Ireland

_________________
Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light