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New Zealand signalled their intention to end their long wait for a maiden world title by demolising England by nine wickets in the opening game of the 2023 ICC World Cup on Thursday.
World Cup 2023: News | Schedule | Results | Points table
The 13th edition of ICC’s showpiece event kicked off with a meeting between the finalists of the 2019 edition, with defending champions England locking horns with New Zealand at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium.
England rode on veteran batter Joe Root’s 86-ball 77 along with valuable contributions from skipper Jos Buttler (43) and Jonny Bairstow (33) to post a competitive 282/9 on the board. The Englishmen were then well and truly on top after prising out the wicket of opener Will Young, who departed for a golden duck, with just 10 runs on the board.
Devon Conway however, would steer the Black Caps out of trouble in the company of all-rounder Rachin Ravindra, who was promoted to the No 3 position in place of skipper Kane Williamson, who missed out on the fixture due to injury.
Conway and Ravindra not only rescued New Zealand from choppy waters, they managed to tilt the balance of the game in their favour and put their opponents under pressure.
Both Conway and Ravindra — playing his maiden ODI World Cup match — would go on to bring up their hundreds and stitch an unbroken 273-run partnership for the second wicket that helped New Zealand thrash England by nine wickets with nearly 14 overs to spare.
Not only did the Kiwis begin their campaign in style, they also avenge the heartbreak of the 2019 World Cup final in the process.
Revisiting the events of the 2023 tournament opener, we take a look at some statistics from the game:
— The 273-run unbroken partnership between Conway and Ravindra is New Zealand’s highest for the second wicket in ODIs, surpassing the 203-run stand between Martin Guptill and Will Young.
— The 273-run stand is also the fourth-highest for any wicket in ICC World Cups, and the highest while chasing.
— With his knock of 152 not out, Conway became only the second batter to register a 150-plus score while chasing in an ICC World Cup match.
— Joe Root’s 77 was his seventh 50-plus score for England in ICC World Cups. He’s currently joint-second on the list alongside Graeme Hick, and behind Graham Gooch (9).
— At age 23 years and 321 days, Rachin Ravindra became the third-youngest to score a century on ICC World Cup debut.
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