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World Test Championship Final Review 2021, Prediction Results, WTC XI, and Stats: It Is New Zealand’s Time

World Test Championship Final Review – Welcome to my 150th article! New Zealand lift the World Test Championship trophy via Jamieson, Conway, Williamson-Taylor show.

After two long, pandemic induced years, the inaugural World Test Championship has finally come to an end. The Kiwis are the world champions, and they thoroughly deserved it.

Traditional English rain, Dinesh Karthik’s meteorology/commentating debut, gritty Test match batting, tall and lanky fast bowlers, de Grandhomme’s hair, a reserve sixth day coming into play, BJ Watling’s retirement, a bit of Ashwin—we saw it all.

The run-rate might have been slow, but the tussle between the top two Test teams was intense. Bowlers bowling consistently in the channel & fighting it out. Great exhibition of Test cricket, ebb and flow throughout.

Here is the World Test Championship Final Review—Match summary, review of India and New Zealand’s key performers, a THANK YOU to our audience, WTC Prediction Results, 3-match Final Debate, Stats, and WTC XI!

Also Read: World Test Championship Final Preview 2021: Will Rain Spoil Watling’s Retirement?

WTC Final Summary

  • Toss: New Zealand won the toss and elected to field first
  • Result: NZ Won by 8 wickets
  • Player of the Match: Kyle Jamieson
  1. India 217/10 (92.1 overs)
    • Ajinkya Rahane 49 (117), Virat Kohli 44 (132)
    • Kyle Jamieson 5/22, Neil Wagner 2/40, Trent Boult 2/47
  2. New Zealand 249/10 (99.2 overs)
    • Devon Conway 54 (153), Kane Williamson 49 (177)
    • Mohammad Shami 4/76, Ishant Sharma 3/48
  3. India 170/10 (73 overs)
    • Rishabh Pant 41 (88), Rohit Sharma 30 (81)
    • Tim Southee 4/48, Trent Boult 3/39
  4. New Zealand 140/2 (45.5 overs)
    • Kane Williamson 52* (89), Ross Taylor 47* (100)
    • Ravichandran Ashwin 2/17
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Highlights

An Ode To The Bowlers

The Indian Bowlers

Before we dive into “What Went Wrong For India” or “How did NZ Win,” let us discuss what made this Test match riveting. Amidst the rain when nobody expected a result, the fast bowlers from both team delivered.

Commentators had analyzed why Shami had been ‘unlucky’ in the last tour of England. Bowled beautifully but without any returns. Not anymore. In one of his later spells in the first innings, he changed the game. The BJ Watling bowled was the ball of the match. Ishant Sharma was at his consistent best. The way he bowled maidens after maidens to Devon Conway, which prompted an uncharacteristic loose shot, was brilliant. Even though Bumrah was not at his best, his final day spell almost brought India back if not for the Pujara drop.

R Ashwin will definitely go down as an all-time best. He has rediscovered himself of late, ending up as the highest wicket-taker in the WTC. Performed across all conditions, saved a Test match in Sydney, scored a century anplug 9 wickets in his home, Chennai, and kept India in the game in the 4th innings (10-5-17-2).

New Zealand – An All-Time Attack

What are the best all-time attacks? Think West Indies’ 1980s generation, Australia’s 2000s attack, Steyn-Morkel-Rabada-Philander for that one series, Anderson-Broad, and India now getting there.

Southee-Boult-Wagner-Jamieson surely rank among the top. Southee’s ball to dismiss Rohit Sharma was an epic change-up in his 4-fer. Boult chipped in with Pujara, Jadeja, Rahane, & Pant’s wickets. Wagner’s intensity was breathtaking and his setup of Rahane & Jadeja was magnificent. Jamieson took the wickets but his economy rate is what suffocated India. An economy of 1.40 after 22 overs in the 1st innings and 1.25 after 25 overs in the second took the steam out of the Indian batting. Add Colin de Grandhomme in these conditions, there was no respite on offer.

India

1. Rohit Sharma As an Overseas Test Opener: Great or Just OK?

Rohit Sharma was criticized for his Southee leave in the 2nd innings that had him LBW, just a few overs before close on the penultimate day.

Sharma has come into his own as a Test opener in the last couple of years. With 2679 runs in 39 Tests with 7-100s, 12-50s, and a best of 212, this looks like pretty decent career after a bumpy start.

The criticism comes from the lack of hundreds in recent overseas Tests.

  • Overall Record (last year): 44.83 average, 161 Vs England
  • Overseas Innings (last year): 26 (77) & 52 (98), 44 (74) & 7 (21), and 34 (68) & 30 (81) in the WTC Final

I think he did his job pretty well. Think Aakash Chopra 2003 or Joe Denly 2019 rather than Sehwag-esque performance. Rohit tired the bowlers and took the shine off the new ball but has not been hitting those daddy hundreds fans at home have become accustomed to. Just the batters after him did not follow suit and NZ have four world-class bowlers to rotate through.

Shubman Gill has always looked calm, composed, and classy on the crease in his little career, but only 3 fifties in 15 innings with the best of 91 shows that Indian openers have a conversion problem.

2. The Pujara-Rahane Conundrum

Pujara

What can India do about Pujara & Rahane? Pujara’s 8 (54) & 15 (80) in the final does not inspire much confidence. His last three centuries came on that 2018 Australia tour. In this WTC cycle, he has hit nine fifties, played those against the pressure innings, taken some blows, and became a perfect foil to Pant in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, but nothing in between.

Rahane

Rahane top-scored for India in the first-innings with a good-looking 49 (117) & briefly revived India with 15 (40). The concerning matter is his dismissals. First innings, Wagner had employed his troops into position. Short ball barrage was about to begin. First ball, Rahane top edges but safe. India 182-5. Next, another short ball, a lose pull, straight to the fielder. Rahane trapped. India collapse. 217-all out.

Second innings – same story. From 72-4 to 109. Good looking shots. Mini-revival after Pujara-Kohli were dismissed and Pant was dropped by Southee. Then out of the blue, he gets caught behind on the leg-side by Trent Boult. Just manages to get out in different ways.

Apart from his glorious overseas hundreds (& 96) or the twin tons in Delhi, there is not much to show. With KL Rahul, Hanuma Vihari, Abhimanyu Easwaran, and Mayank Agarwal in line, questions will be asked of the vice-captain.

Meanwhile Kohli’s hunt for his elusive 71st ton continues. His 44 was actually a good innings, but he did not convert either. When none of your middle order goes big, you are not going to win a Test, especially a final.

Also Read: India Vs Australia Series Review 2020-21: The Greatest Story of Them All? Better Than Ashes 2005?

3. The Curse Against The Lower Order

India 5/182 to 10/217 & 5/142 to 10/170. Ten wickets combined within 63 runs. New Zealand 5-162 to 10-249. 87 runs via Jamieson, Southee, & Boult.

That was the difference.

India has become a world-beater team with fast bowlers galore & growing depth over the past couple of years, but they have yet to counter the Sam Currans or Kyle Jamiesons.

New Zealand

1. Conway & Jamieson: Cricket Is A Piece of Cake

International cricket is a piece of cake for Devon Conway & Kyle Jamieson, isn’t it?

Conway

In the context of tough low-scoring match, a 70-run opening partnership between Latham and Conway was crucial. Conway’s 54 (153) was the highest score of New Zealand’s first innings. His mode of dismissal would concern him, but otherwise, pretty good start this.

  • 3 Tests, 379 runs, 63.16 average, 1-100, 2-50s, best of 200 (at Lord’s debut)
  • 3 ODIs, 225 runs, 75.00 average, 1-100, 1-50, best of 126
  • 14 T20Is, 473 runs, 59.12 average, 4-50s, best of 99*

Jamieson

What about Jamieson, the man of the hour? He was literally head and shoulders above everyone. Rohit, Kohli, Pant among his first-inning wickets, 30-run 7th wicket partnership with a 21 (16), and finally breaking the game with Pujara-Kohli wickets on the final morning.

  • 8 Tests, 46 wickets, 14.17 average, 6/48 BBI, 11/117 BBM
  • 256 runs, 42.66 average, 1-50, best of 51*

2. When The Time Comes, Kane Williamson & Ross Taylor Deliver

Kane Williamson & Ross Taylor are the two senior pros of the New Zealand batting lineup. Taylor has been there for 15 years, through unfortunate run-outs, tied finals, DRS decisions, captaincy controversies. In ICC knockouts, both have scored a few 30s and 40s, but never a match-changing innings.

Cometh the hour, cometh the men.

Williamson’s scratchy 49 (177) exuded his class. Despite not timing the ball and struggling, he stayed in the game and stitched the partnerships that got New Zealand to a respectable total.

In the fourth innings chase, the Kiwis were struggling at 44/2 in 20 overs. R Ashwin at the other end operating with his guile. Anything could have happened. The senior statesmen soaked in the pressure, with dot balls and maiden overs building.

After surviving the rough patch, they rotated the strike. A few overs later, the singles & doubles turned into boundaries. Couple of dropped catches signaled the end. Finally, the moment came with Ross Taylor hitting the winning runs. A fairytale script. What’s more? An iconic picture of brothers-in-arm to cap it off.

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3. Catches Win Matches Feat Tom Latham & Henry Nicholls

In the preview, we said to watch out for Tom Latham & Henry Nicholls, the New Zealand of the New Zealand team. Nobody ever talks about them, but they have been consistent performers in the last couple of years. With the bat, except for Latham’s 30, there was not much of note.

It is the fielding where these two came alive. Latham’s three catches and fielding efforts almost saved 35+ runs. Nicholls’ running backwards-diving catch off Pant was the moment of the match for me. India’s hopes ended with that catch.

And what about BJ Watling? Perfection behind the stumps in the first innings (no byes given) and kept wickets through injury in the second. The runs might not have come, but New Zealand’s greatest ever keeper retires on a high.

Little contributions, but in a close low-scoring affair, these moments makes the difference.

The Moment

Ecstasy. Team spirit. Absolute Joy.

Here are some of my takes from the final moment:

Tribute to the Legendary Commentating Crew

From a fan’s point of view, the commentating and analysis put this final on another level. The Sky Sports crew has always been amazing with Nasser Hussain & Michael Atherton, but Ian Bishop, Sunil Gavaskar, Kumar Sangakkara, Isa Guha, Simon Doull, and debutant Dinesh Karthik took it to another level.

Analyzing batting techniques, debating who won each session, and playful sledging at its very best. Mohammad Shami’s “chances created vs wickets” analysis was especially intriguing.

Here is a look from DK, the weatherman, on the first couple of days updating social media with regular Twitter & Instagram updates.

The Tweets

150th Article – Thank YOU

Before I move to the Prediction Results section of the article, a brief thank you to our viewers. We have reached our daddy hundred—the 150 is up!

I wanted to take a moment and thank all of you for the support. The Broken Cricket Dream blog began exactly 11 months ago, when the 1st Test between West Indies & England ended. What a chase that was.

The Broken Dreams

That game reminded me of the love of the sport, what I had been missing in the months right after the coronavirus hit. So the journey began, word by word, paragraph by paragraph, blog post by post. The goal of this platform was to share our own dreams, hopes, and love of the game with each other. We all have dreamt of being a cricketer at some point in time but life does not go to plan. That is okay though, things happen for the better. Here is a list of Broken Dreams by our fellow cricket lovers. For me, writing about cricket itself is a dream come true.

None of this would have been possible without our fans and followers. I thoroughly enjoy the discussions and little debates. Keep them coming. Love the interaction!

Anyway, 150 articles and 158,000 words later, Broken Cricket Dreams is still going strong and will continue to grow. We have now spread to several social media platforms. Feel free to check them out below. COMMENT BELOW of your thoughts on the WTC Final, your Broken Dreams, or any feedback!

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WTC Final Awards

Alright time for the #BCDAwards.

India New Zealand
MVPKyle Jamieson
22-12-31-5 & 21 (16)
24-10-30-2 & DNB
Most RunsRohit Sharma (34, 30), Ajinkya Rahane (49, 15) – 64Kane Williamson – 101 (49, 52*)
Most WicketsMohammad Shami (4,0), Ravichandran Ashwin (2,2) – 4Kyle Jamieson – 7
X FactorR AshwinJamieson, Conway, Williamson-Taylor, Southee, Latham/Nicholls (catches)
VerdictNZ won by 8 wickets
Broken Dream5th consecutive ICC knockout defeat
(2014 T20 WC Final, 2015 WC SF, 2016 T20 WC SF, 2017 CT Final, 2019 WC SF)
Watling retires, but on a high
World Test Championship Final Review – Awards

Prediction Results

Time for the results…

And the winners are Sourabh Sanyal and Xan with 4/10.🥇 CONGRATULATIONS!!!👏

Several interesting comments as well!

World Test Championship Final Review – The Predictions

MVPMost RunsMost WicketsX FactorVerdictBroken Dream
Me

(3/10)
Rahane (IND)
Nicholls (NZ)
Rohit Sharma ✔ (IND)
Tom Latham (NZ)
Ishant Sharma (IND)
Tim Southee (NZ)
R Ashwin (IND) ✔
Ajaz Patel (NZ)
DRAW
(Rain, rain go away)
Watling Retires ✔
Xan

(4/10)
Rahane
Jamieson ✔
Rohit Sharma ✔
Devon Conway
Ishant Sharma
Tim Southee
R Jadeja
Ross Taylor ✔
DRAWWatling Retires ✔
Anand

(2/10)
Jadeja
Nicholls
Pujara
Tom Latham
Ishant Sharma
Trent Boult
Pant
Conway ✔
DRAWWatling Retires ✔
Rohan Gulavani

(1/10)
Pant
Southee
Rahane
Nicholls
Ishant Sharma
Tim Southee
Jadeja
Jamieson ✔
DRAW (Rain interruption)No clear winner for first ever WTC Final
Sourabh Sanyal

(4/10)
Ashwin
Nicholls
Rahane ✔
Henry Nicholls
Ishant Sharma
Jamieson ✔
Jaddu
Kane ✔
India if rain permits, Else DrawWatling Retires ✔
Mohd Shamir Ansari

(2/10)
Rohit Sharma
Ross Taylor
Rohit Sharma ✔ Mohammad Shami ✔ JadejaIndia WinsNZ reaches so far but cannot win final
Naman Agarwal

(2/10)
Ishant
Southee
Virat Kohli
Kane Williamson ✔
Ishant
Boult
Pant
Taylor ✔
Draw
Halsey NimRahane
Wagner
ConwayWagnerCDG
Vandit

(3/10)
Rain ✔ Pujara
Williamson ✔
Shami ✔
Boult
Jadeja/
de Grandhomme
DRAWNowhere near enough play to get a result
World Test Championship Final Review – Prediction Results

The Comments

  • Andrew Williamson: “Just hoping the winner isn’t going to be Noah and his Ark. If there is enough play, I think New Zealand have the attack to trouble India, on what should be a track with a fair bit in it for the quicks. Kane or Taylor will have to go for NZ to succeed.”
  • Halsey Nim: “May need a sporting declaration somewhere along the way.”
  • Jonny: “Pujara vital for India (assume they bat first as NZ best chance is to put them in), Ashwin with important late runs, Boult to shine. Latham grinds out runs, Kane obs, BJ won’t want to fail. Indian wickets spread evenly. Kohli 100 2nd innings. NZ fall just short…”
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World Test Championship XI

Top-Order

The criteria is the player has to be the best at that position. Kane Williamson & Labuschagne both were excellent #3s, but I had to pick Labuschagne at the expense of the WTC winning captain. Labuschagne was the best batter in the WTC – most runs (1675), most hundreds (5), and fifties (9).

Jamieson & Labuschagne were the finds of this WTC cycle, so they walk in the XI.

Rohit Sharma just edges out Dean Elgar for the opening spot. I was tempted to go with Elgar since South Africa is a tougher place for openers, but with Karunaratne already at the top, I went with a left-right, defensive-aggressive combination. Both Root & Smith were excellent, but Smith’s iconic 774 runs in the Ashes puts him at the coveted #4 position.

Middle Order

The #5-7 spots were interesting. Ben Stokes’ Headingly show, relentless bowling spells, and 4 tons/6 fifties gives him the all-rounder spot. I initially had Rahane, the fifth highest scorer in the WTC and highest for India but instead, went with both Rishabh Pant and Mohammad Rizwan. Pant has mastered a couple of iconic chases, and Rizwan has been a revelation in the last year with his overseas rearguard innings. Quinton de Kock was also close behind in the keepers race.

Bowlers

Finally, the bowlers were the toughest to pick. My XI coincidentally had good batters as well. Mohammad Shami (40 wickets at 20.47), Josh Hazlewood (47 @ 20.54), Neil Wagner (35 @ 22.97), Jimmy Anderson (39 @ 19.51), Tim Southee (56 @ 20.82), Ishant Sharma (39 @ 17.75) had better averages, Anrich Nortje & Kemar Roach were brilliant throughout. I have not even talked about Trent Boult, Kagiso Rabada, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, and Shaheen Shah Afridi—all wonderful bowlers who had a decent couple of years without lighting the world on fire.

What an era to live in.

World Test Championship Combined XI

  1. Dimuth Karunaratne (C)
  2. Rohit Sharma
  3. Marnus Labuschagne
  4. Steve Smith
  5. Ben Stokes
  6. Rishabh Pant (WK)
  7. Mohammad Rizwan
  8. Ravichandran Ashwin
  9. Kyle Jamieson
  10. Pat Cummins
  11. Stuart Broad
  12. Tim Southee

For more World XIs, check out the articles below!

World Test Championship Statistics

Finally to cap it off, here are the statistics. Ashwin went up to #1, Rahane and Rohit Sharma remained at #5 & #6 respectively. Rahaen, Taylor, Watling, and Pant show up in the catches/dismissals section.

Most RunsMost WicketsMost CatchesMost Dismissals
Marnus Labuschagne – 1675Ravichandran Ashwin – 67Joe Root – 34Tim Paine – 65
Joe Root – 1660Pat Cummins – 70Steve Smith – 27Quinton de Kock – 50
Steve Smith – 1341Stuart Broad – 69Ben Stokes – 25Jos Buttler – 50
Ben Stokes – 1334Tim Southee – 56Ajinkya Rahane – 23BJ Watling – 48
Ajinkya Rahane – 1159Nathan Lyon – 56Ross Taylor – 21Rishabh Pant – 41
World Test Championship Final Review – Statistics

Best ScoresBest Bowling Figures
David Warner – 335* (Vs Pakistan – Adelaide)Lasith Embuldeniya – 7/137 (Vs England – Galle)
Zak Crawley – 267 (Vs Pakistan – Southampton)Ravichandran Ashwin – 7/145 (Vs South Africa – Visakhapatnam)
Virat Kohli – 254 (Vs South Africa – Pune)Jasprit Bumrah – 6/27 (Vs West Indies – Kingston)
Kane Williamson – 251 (Vs West Indies – Hamilton)Stuart Broad – 6/31 (Vs West Indies – Manchester)
Dimuth Karunaratne – 244 (Vs Bangladesh – Pallekelle)Axar Patel – 6/38 (Vs England – Ahmedabad)
World Test Championship Final Review – Best Performances

What did you all think of the World Test Championship Final Review? COMMENT Below with your thoughts!

Image Courtesy: ICC

World Test Championship Final Preview 2021: Will Rain Spoil Watling’s Retirement?

World Test Championship Final Preview.

After two long years of Test cricket & coronavirus interruption, the World Test Championship Final is finally here.

Rising Kiwis are slightly better prepared against world beaters India with a series against England. India has been in England for a few weeks due to quarantine but have only played an internal practice match.

Two of the best teams on show, finally some context for Test cricket, BJ Watling’s retirement, but will rain spoil it all?

Also Read: Alternative World Test Championship Points Table, 5 Things To Watch Out From the World Test Championship Final

Why Is The WTC Final Significant? A Brief History

The idea of the World Test Championship is not a new one.

World Test Championship was supposed to become a reality in 2009, 2013, & 2017, but each of those iterations were cancelled in favor of much more lucrative, ICC ODI Champions Trophy.

Imagine an Indian team comprising of Sehwag, Sachin, Dravid, VVS Laxman, MS Dhoni, Zaheer Khan competing against McCullum’s 2015 team or even better, the golden South African era of Jacques Kallis, Graeme Smith, AB De Villiers, & Dale Steyn earlier in the decade.

Anyway, World Test Championship finally came into existence in 2019 and began with the England-Australia Ashes series. 58 matches later, India and New Zealand are deservedly in the finals, carrying bench strengths of envy.

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Playing Conditions

When And Where?

Here is the date and the venue for the World Test Championship Final. It is linked to ESPNCricinfo’s scorecard and live updates.

ICC Changes implemented

The new ICC playing conditions are now in place. Two of the most prominent for this match will be:

  • The LBW zone for DRS umpire call decisions has been shifted a little bit. It would be interesting to see how many LBW decisions are overturned in this Test match.
  • A reserve sixth day will be utilized in case all possible overs are not recovered during the five days. Looks highly likely that the sixth day will come into play.

A couple of other little changes will also be in place.

Rain, Rain Go Away

There is a 100% rain forecast for the first four days of the Tests and then down to 80% and 70% for the couple of days after. Well, it is England….

Recent ICC Record

Here is a recent ODI & T20I World Cup history for India and New Zealand. Both teams have underwhelmed over the past decade given their talent. Since 2007, here is how the teams stack up.

India At ICC Events

  • Champions Trophy – Winner (2013), Runners-Up (2017)
  • ODI World Cup – Winner (2011), Semi-finals (2015), Semi-finals (2019)
  • T20I World Cup – Winner (2007), Runners-Up (2014), Semi-finals (2016)

New Zealand At ICC Events

  • Champions Trophy – Runners-Up (2009)
  • ODI World Cup – Semi-finals (2007), Semi-finals (2011), Runners-Up (2015), Runners-Up (2019)
  • T20I World Cup – Semi-finals (2007), Semi-finals (2016)

These records are meaningless because tomorrow is a new day and Test cricket is just another beast.

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Road To the Finals

India

India began by routing West Indies in the Caribbean, before securing points at home against lackluster South Africa & Bangladesh teams.

Then came the tours Down Under. While Kiwis routed India in swing bowling conditions, India delivered a masterclass of ages in Australia. After 36/9 in Adelaide, Rahane’s century resurrected India in Melbourne. Then, the Pujara-Pant-Vihari-Ashwin show ensured India survived the 3rd Test, and the youngsters Shardul-Sundar-Pant-Siraj broke the Gabba fort to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Finally, the England home series was a completely one-sided event even after Joe Root’s classic gave England a headstart at Chennai. Ashwin’s all-round magic at home & Axar Patel’s memorable debut ensured India ease past England.

India Matches Series Result
Vs WI*22-0
Vs SA33-0
Vs Ban22-0
Vs NZ*20-2
Vs Aus*42-1
Vs Eng43-1
Total1712-4
World Test Championship Final Preview – India’s Road To Glory

*Signifies away series

New Zealand

New Zealand’s road to glory was much more formulaic.

The Kiwis started with away tours of Sri Lanka & Australia. While they put on a good show in New Zealand, winning one match, they were hammered in Australia (barring Neil Wagner’s intense series).

At home, it was same old. Swinging conditions. Boult, Southee, and debutant of the year, Kyle Jamieson, wrecked havoc against India and West Indies. Only Pakistan provided any semblance of resistance with Fawad Alam’s classic fourth innings ton going in vain with four overs left in the Test match.

New ZealandMatchesSeries Results
Vs SL*21-1
Vs Aus*30-3
Vs Ind22-0
Vs WI22-0
Vs Pak22-0
Total117-4
World Test Championship Final Preview – New Zealand’s Road To Glory

World Test Championship Final Preview – The Teams

India

  • Watch out for Ajinkya Rahane. He has a tendency to perform when it matters the most although his lack of consistency is frustrating. Rahane’s leadership & century in Melbourne was the catalyst for India in the memorable Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Since then, his form has gone hiding. England will bring back nice personal memories, and he is probably India’s best batter in swinging conditions. It is high time he shows up.
  • There were rumors that Mohammad Siraj would play in place of one of Mohammad Shami or Ishant Sharma, but that did not happen. India’s bowling has variety with Bumrah’s accuracy, Ishant’s seam, and Shami’s reverse swing. Looking forward to watch Ishant, who is in his 4th and most rewarding phase of his career. His 7-74 at Lord’s in the last tour was especially spectacular.
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New Zealand

  • Tributes have started flowing in for BJ Watling in his retirement match. This one is my favorite, especially his mom’s statement. Watling has been a symbol of this rising team’s resilience and stability. Always solid behind the stumps, he will go down as Kiwis’s greatest keeper, but what I will miss the most is his rearguard action. NZ’s middle order rarely collapsed, but when it did, Watling was at the rescue. The question is, does he have one fighting innings left in him?
  • This is a very understated team, but do you know who is the New Zealand in the New Zealand team? Tom Latham & Henry Nicholls. When the Conways, Williamsons, or Taylors make huge scores around them, you can guarantee that Latham-Nicholls will provide ample solid support. Expect one of them to rise to the occasion in the finals.

Watch Out For

  • Sharma-Shubman Vs Pace brigade of Boult-Southee-Jamieson: This might as well set the tone for this match. A Mumbai Indians mini-match between Boult & Rohit Sharma.
  • Latham-Conway-Nicholls Vs R Ashwin: Ashwin has been India’s most successful bowler in this WTC cycle and has performed across all conditions (with both bat and ball). Conway is in the form of his life and the Kiwis have 2 other left-hand batters in the Top 5. Expect to see a lot of Ashwin.
  • The slip catching. England’s dropped catches were on show in the last series and they have been one of the worst slip catching sides in the past two years. So I am glad Ind-NZ are playing this week. Both teams have legendary fast bowlers, so the ball will go to the slips more than usual. Rest assured, the catches will be taken. Rahane, Taylor, Rohit, Kohli, Latham should do the job.

Starting XIs

India

India has revealed its XI ahead of time. Shardul Thakur, Washington Sundar, Mohammad Siraj, Hanuma Vihari, Axar Patel, Mayank Agarwal all played crucial roles in the lead up to the WTC Finals, but unfortunately did not make the final XI. This is also the first time that Jadeja-Ashwin-Sharma-Shami-Bumrah will play together. What a mouth-watering lineup.

  1. Rohit Sharma, 2. Shubman Gill, 3. Cheteshwar Pujara, 4. Virat Kohli*, 5. Ajinkya Rahane, 6. Rishabh Pant (WK), 7. Ravindra Jadeja, 8. Ravichandran Ashwin, 9. Ishant Sharma, 10. Mohammad Shami, 11. Jasprit Bumrah

Squad: Hanuma Vihari, Wriddhiman Saha (WK), Umesh Yadav, Mohammad Siraj

New Zealand

New Zealand’s lineup selects itself, but the crucial question is the #7-8 spot. Matt Henry, Neil Wagner, & Ajaz Patel performed admirably in the England series and Colin de Grandhomme has been out for a while, so will they go for a four-fast bowler strategy? Ajaz Patel should have done enough in the England series for a spin option in this Southampton pitch.

  1. Tom Latham, Devon Conway, 3. Kane Williamson*, 4. Ross Taylor, 5. Henry Nicholls, 6. BJ Watling (WK), 7. Colin de Grandhomme/Kyle Jamieson/Matt Henry, 8. Tim Southee, 9. Neil Wagner, 10. Trent Boult, 11. Ajaz Patel

Squad: Will Young, Tom Blundell (WK)

Mitchell Santner, Daryl Mitchell, Doug Bracewell, Jacob Duffy, and Rachin Ravindra failed to make the final cut.

Prediction

I honestly cannot see a way past the weather. Both teams have excellent bowling options, so unless both teams suffer collapses twice, a result would be very hard to attain.

Would love if we get a full game, but for now, going with a Draw.

Verdict: Draw 0-0

If the game does happen, what am I excited for the most? Neil Wagner’s intensity, Colin de Grandhomme’s hairdo, Williamson-Kohli-Southee’s continuing journey from U-19 World Cup, Pujara-Pant combination, Ross Taylor’s wisdom, an emotional sunset to Watling’s wonderful career, and in general, just a hard-fought sporting final.

IndiaNew Zealand
MVPAjinkya RahaneHenry Nicholls
Most RunsRohit SharmaTom Latham
Most WicketsIshant SharmaTim Southee
X-FactorRavichandran AshwinAjaz Patel
VerdictDrawDraw
World Test Championship Final Preview – Prediction

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World Test Championship Records

Are there are records that can be broken in the World Test Championship Final?

Batting

It is really interesting that even though NZ made it to the finals, there is nobody in the top 15 run-scorer. Combination of several players standing up and the fact that NZ did not play as many games. Kane Williamson is at 16th with 817 runs and Tom Latham is 25th with 680 runs.

India, on the other hand, have 5 batters in the Top 15:

  • Rahane – 1095 (5th)
  • Rohit Sharma – 1030 (6th)
  • Kohli – 877 (11th)
  • Agarwal – 857 (12th)
  • Pujara – 818 (15th)

Bowling

Ashwin is on #3 with 67 wickets and Southee is New Zealand’s best at #5 with 51 wickets.

  • Kyle Jamieson – 36 (12th)
  • Ishant Sharma – 36 (13th)
  • Mohammad Shami – 36 (14th)
  • Jasprit Bumrah – 34 (16th)
  • Trent Boult – 34 (18th)
  • Neil Wagner – 32 (20th)

Fielding and Dismissals

Both teams are pretty close on this list with BJ Watling – 43 dismissals (4th) and Rishabh Pant – 40 (5th).

In terms of catches, Rahane – 22 catches (4th) and Ross Taylor – 18 (5th) are at the top with Rohit Sharma – 16 (6th) and Virat Kohli – 16 (7th) close behind. New Zealand’s next best is Tom Latham – 14 (12th).

Most RunsMost WicketsMost CatchesMost Dismissals
Marnus Labuschagne – 1675Pat Cummins – 70Joe Root – 34Tim Paine – 65
Joe Root – 1660Stuart Broad – 69Steve Smith – 27Jos Buttler – 50
Steve Smith – 1341Ravichandran Ashwin – 67Ben Stokes – 25Quinton de Kock – 46
Ben Stokes – 1334Nathan Lyon – 56Ajinkya Rahane – 22BJ Watling – 43
Ajinkya Rahane – 1095 Tim Southee – 51Ross Taylor – 18Rishabh Pant – 40
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images

England Vs New Zealand 2021 Test Series Review: England Needs to Self-Reflect After Conway’s Show

England Vs New Zealand 2021 Test Series Review – Short but good nevertheless.

Devon Conway & Will Young eased into Test cricket, New Zealand tried their options for the World Test Championship Final, and England lost some options as they gear up for the India series & the must awaited Ashes later this season.

Also Read: Alternative World Test Championship Points Table,New Zealand Vs England 2021 Test Series Preview

Results, Scorecards, & Video Highlights

A slightly boring draw and a New Zealand win to sum it up.

  1. Match Drawn*Devon Conway
    1. Video Highlights
  2. New Zealand Won by 8 wickets*Matt Henry
    1. Video Highlights

*Player of the Match

Series Stats

Player of the SeriesEngland
Devon Conway
New Zealand
Most RunsRory Burns – 238 runs
(best of 132, 59.50 average, 100s-1, 50s-1)
Devon Conway – 306 runs
(best of 200, 76.50 average, 100s-1, 50s-1
Most WicketsOllie Robinson – 7 wickets (1 match only)
Tim Southee – 7 wickets (1 match only)
(best innings – 6/43, best match – 7/80, 11.42 average)
England Vs New Zealand 2021 Series Stats

Highlights

England

England’s batting continues to go down hill after the 1st test against India. They have now lost 4 and drawn 1 in the past five Tests (2 at home, 4 away). All the hopes and dreams after away series wins in South Africa and Sri Lanka are crashing down quickly.

The Batting: England’s Batting Averages Just Not Good Enough

Jarrod Kimber analyzed England’s poor batting numbers this era quite nicely.

  • One of the highlights of Kimber’s analysis was Rory Burns has been a stable cog in this English lineup despite the poor numbers. He scored a brilliant ton and almost carried the bat in this series, which increased his Test average to 33.23 with 3 hundreds and 9 fifties. Not the best stats after 25 Tests, but the Sibley-Rory partnership has done a decent job in the past couple of years. Well, not quite Strauss-Cook, but the standards have been so low recently that a Burns century should be rightly celebrated.
  • Zak Crawley’s scores in this series—2 & 2, 0 & 17. Not good enough for a #3 batter at home. I hope England persist with him but he needs to meet them halfway, nothing of note since that 267.
  • Ollie Pope looks like Ian Bell, bats like Ian Bell, but I hope he starts converting like Ian Bell. Beautiful 20s and 30s can only get you so far—think James Vince (22 & 20*, 19 & 23 this series).

The batting averages of England’s main batters are far from impressive. Joe Root’s overall average is great, but has been struggling at home for quite a while now.

Rory Burns (33.23), Dom Sibley (30.78), Zak Crawley (29.33), Joe Root (48.68), Ollie Pope (31.50), Jos Buttler (34.53), Ben Stokes (37.04).

Suddenly, Joe Denly’s 29.53 with his infamous Denturies does not look that bad, does it?

The Nasser Hussain

Commentator Nasser Hussain did not mince any words in the post-series analysis, urging their batters to get back to basics and avoid funny techniques. The current England batters have the mindset that:

“Everyone else that has played the game in the history of the game. Viv Richards you were wrong. Everyone is wrong, we are right.”

– Nasser Hussain

Debutants & Fast Bowlers A Mixed Bag

  • Debutants Ollie Robinson & James Bracey had contrasting series. Although Robinson had a brilliant debut, both with the bat and bowl (highest wicket-taker for England in just 1 match), he was suspended from international cricket due to resurfacing controversial tweets. Poor Bracey had a tough debut series – 0, 0 & 8. Broken Dreams for both.
  • The senior fast bowlers were the only positives of the series. Mark Wood impressed…with the bat. He was among the wickets and consistently bowled his heart out as usual but his 41 & 29 in the 2nd Test showed England that the pitch does not contain any demons.
  • The old Stuart Broad showed up. In the 2nd Test, it seems that one of those spells was just around the corner. One of the bright lights in the series. Definitely got a couple more years left in him.
  • Jimmy Anderson was not as sharp this series, with just 3 wickets and averaging 68.66. Surpassed Alastair Cook as the most capped Test player for England-162 Tests. Take a bow.

New Zealand

The Debutants Star

  • In every series review, I highlight a couple of standout performers of the series. Guess what? In EVERY New Zealand series over the last year, Devon Conway has made the series headlines. T20I debut? Conquered. ODI debut? Check. Test debut at Lord’s? Double century and almost carries the bat. What else is there to say? 76.50 Test average, 75.00 ODI average, 59.12 T20I average. 1-200, 1-100, 4-50s in just 18 innings. Brilliant.
  • Will Young is continuing his good touch. Scored his maiden T20I fifty against Bangladesh recently and was picked in the 2nd Test after Williamson’s injury on the basis of a couple of centuries in County Cricket. Missed his century by 18 runs, but has finally found his feet in international cricket. He his here to stay.
  • Matt Henry, Ajaz Patel, and Neil Wagner all impressed with whatever chances they got.
    • Henry picked 3/78 & 3/36 to bag the player of the match in the 2nd Test
    • Ajaz Patel’s control and guile were impressive with figures of 2/34 & 2/25.
    • Neil Wagner bowled line and length more than his usual bouncers. Not unplayable but impactful for sure. Should edge Kyle Jamieson/Matt Henry for the WTC Final spot.

Senior Pros Provide Solid Support

  • Tim Southee is gearing up to the WTC Final with a superb series. After having re-invented himself in T20Is this year, he has found his swing, line, & length again.
  • Ross Taylor, one of New Zealand’s greatest, justified that tagline with a 80 in the 2nd Test. The beauty of that innings was he was nowhere close to his best. Stuart Broad was beating his edge right and left, but he survived and capitalized later on. In contrast, England’s batting collapsed to 76-7 and none of the batters had the will to fight it out like Taylor did.
  • Unfortunately for BJ Watling, he suffered a minor back injury on the eve of the 2nd Test and missed out. Hope he is ready for his swansong in the World Test Championship final.

In addition to Rory Burns’ 81 in the 2nd Test, the only criticism for New Zealand I could find would be the lack of conversion for three batters (Conway 80, Young 82, Taylor 80).

AwardsEnglandNew Zealand
Emerging PlayerOllie RobinsonDevon Conway & Will Young
Surprise Package Mark Wood, the batsman Matt Henry & Ajaz Patel
Broken Cricket DreamOllie Robinson, Zak CrawleyBJ Watling
England Vs New Zealand 2021 Series Awards

Where Do They Go From Here?

New Zealand will be in the World Test Championship Final starting tomorrow.

Apart from the various leagues in the next few months which will keep the New Zealand players busy, the next international fixture is scheduled between 29th January-8th February 2022 for 3 ODIs & a T20I.

The English players have a long season ahead.

England Women Vs India Women 2021 Series Preview: Test Cricket Makes a Comeback

England Women Vs India Women 2021 Series Preview.

It is a huge year for India Women—Test cricket makes a comeback after seven years, last playing against South Africa in 2014. India is scheduled for one Test against England as well as two Tests in Australia later this year, including a Day-Night Test.

Smriti Mandhana, Punam Raut, Mithali Raj, Harmanpreet Kaur, Jhulan Goswami, Shikha Pandey, and Poonam Yadav return from that game 7 years ago.

England, on the other hand, have played multiple Ashes series with one Test match each (2013, 2013-14, 2015, 2017-18, 2019). Amy Jones, Tammy Beaumont, Heather Knight, Georgia Elwiss, Natalie Sciver, Katherine Brunt, Anya Shrubsole, and Sophie Ecclestone return from their last Test.

While the Test match is in the forefront now, do not forget the limited overs. The build up to the 2022 Women’s ODI World Cup is about to begin.

Also Read: Need For Change In Women’s Cricket: Hoping Against Hope, India Vs South Africa Women Series Review, England Vs New Zealand Women Series Review

When And Where?

Test

  1. Only Test: June 16th-19th, Bristol

ODIs

  1. 1st ODI: June 27th, Bristol
  2. 2nd ODI: June 30th, Taunton
  3. 3rd ODI: July 3rd, Worcester

T20Is

  1. 1st T20I: July 9th, Northampton
  2. 2nd T20I: July 11th, Hove
  3. 3rd T20I: July 15th, Chelmsford

Test Match Preview

In The News

The used pitch has been under the scanner, especially with captain Heather Knight’s disappointment palpable on not been provided a fresh pitch. This women’s Test match was not given enough attention, with a Gloucestershire vs Sussex T20 Blast game held last week.

Meanwhile, both the India men’s & women’s arrived together on June 3rd in Southampton and had been in quarantine since.

Test captain Mithali Raj has put her support behind multi-format series for women’s cricket like the Ashes, with a points system distributed across the three formats. India’s vice-captain Kaur is in a positive mindset with regards to this Test match despite lack of match practice, especially after receiving some words of advice with a conversation with Ajinkya Rahane.

Return for coach Ramesh Powar in this series as well.

Head-To-Head, Previous Matches, & Records

India have won their past three encounters (England 2006, England 2014, South Africa 2014) and they have a golden opportunity in this series. If they win this Test match, they will break the record for most consecutive Test wins in women’s cricket.

Long-term records do not mean much, but England has only won against India (1995) in 13 meetings. On the other hand, India have won two, both in England.

In fact, India in Tests are unbeaten in England —2 wins, 6 draws.

My Starting XIs

England Women

  1. Lauren Winfield-Hill, 2. Tammy Beaumont, 3. Heather Knight*, 4. Georgia Elwiss, 5. Natalie Sciver, 6. Amy Jones (WK), 7. Fran Wilson, 8. Kate Cross, 9. Anya Shrubsole, 10. Katherine Brunt, 11. Sophie Ecclestone

12. Emily Arlott, 13. Sophia Dunkley, 14. Tash Farrant, 15. Mady Villiers

*Captain

Note: Dunkley made her debut. No Fran Wilson in the actual game.

India Women – Test Squad

  1. Smriti Mandhana, 2. Jemimah Rodrigues, 3. Punam Raut, 4. Mithali Raj*, 5. Harmanpreet Kaur, 6. Deepti Sharma, 7. Taniya Bhatia (WK), 8. Jhulan Goswami, 9. Shikha Pandey, 10. Arundhati Reddy, 11. Poonam Yadav

12. Ekta Bisht, 13. Priya Punia, 14. Sneh Rana, 15. Indrani Roy (WK), 16. Shafali Verma, 17. Pooja Vastrakar, 18. Radha Yadav

*Note: Sneh Rana, Shafali Verma, Pooja Vastrakar actually made the XI at the expense of Yadav, Jemimah, and Reddy.

T20s Only: 19. Simran Bahadur, 20. Harleen Deol, 21. Richa Ghosh

England Women Vs India Women 2021 – Team Previews

India Women

  • Shikha Pandey’s omission in the South Africa series caught the public by surprise as she has been one of India’s most dependable bowlers in recent times. Expect the fast bowling trio – Pandey, experienced Jhulan Goswami, and Arundhati Reddy to make the ball talk during the Test series.
  • Mithali Raj debuted more than 22 years and has played a total of just 10 Test matches. She holds a stellar record in the limited opportunities—best of 214, 1-100, 4 50s, average of 51.00. Highest ODI run-scorer in women’s cricket, watch out for Raj in the ODI series in her final season as the 2022 World Cup will be her swansong.
  • The Young Brigade—Shafali Verma, Harleen Deol, Radha Yadav, Pooja Vastrakar, and Simran Bahadur—have immense potential. Although Shafali Verma is in the Test squad, it is unlikely she will get a break at the top with Mandhana-Raut-Jemimah-Mithali-Priya in front. A certainty in the T20Is, the explosive opener should receive her ODI debut in this series.

England Women

  • Tammy Beaumont was on another planet during the New Zealand series, with 231 runs in the ODIs (best of 88*) & 102 runs in the T20Is. 4 fifties in 6 innings. A class apart. She would be itching to convert to triple figures, and this Test match would be an ideal opportunity if she continues her form.
  • Lookout for the Shrubsole-Brunt combination. Katherine Brunt’s experience came to the fore with a player of the match performance in the 3rd T20I against NZ, England’s last match before this series. Anya Shrubsole’s name was etched in legends with an iconic performance in the close 2017 ODI World Cup final, coincidentally against India.
  • Knight-Sciver are key to this English middle order. Although they only have 7 and 5 Test caps to their names respectively, they are the senior pros in this lineup, having represented England in over 150 games each across formats. Knight has a Test century (157), while Sciver’s best is 88. Across formats, Knight has 3 centuries and 27 fifties, while Nat Sciver has 3 hundreds and 24 fifties to go along with her 118 wickets.

Prediction

Home side England have the upper-hand in the Tests, although India will fight it out. The limited overs series should be much more competitive. I am especially excited for the ODI seriesrepeat of the 2017 ODI World Cup finals (also held in the same country).

  • Predictions
    • Test: England 1-0
    • ODI: India 2-1
    • T20I: England 2-1

The Hunch

My gut feeling says that Punam Raut is going to be the key player in this tour. She had an outstanding series against South Africa, providing India the little bit of stability during the series.

Her stats in that series speak for herself: 1-100, 2-50s, 263 runs, and a tremendous average of 87.66.

Hoping her form continues.

England WomenIndia Women
Player of the Series/MVPNatalie SciverPunam Raut
Most RunsTammy BeaumontPunam Raut
Most WicketsKatherine BruntShikha Pandey
Emerging PlayerSophie DunkleyHarleen Deol
Surprise PackageAmy Jones Arundhati Reddy

What are your predictions about the England Women Vs India Women 2021 series? Let us know in the COMMENTS section below!

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COPYRIGHT @Nitesh Mathur, aka Nit-X, 06/15/2021; Email at bcd@brokencricketdreams.com

Scotland Women tour of Ireland 2021: Leah Paul Shines as Ireland Comes Back

Scotland Women Tour of Ireland 2021 Series Review.

Although Scotland Women started on a bright note, Ireland women came back with 3 wins on a trot. Here is a brief recap and major highlights from this series!

Also Read: Need for Change in Women’s Cricket: Hoping Against Hope

Ireland Women won by 3-1

  1. Scotland Women won by 11 runs*Katie McGill
  2. Ireland Women won by 61 runs*Gaby Lewis
  3. Ireland Women won by 41 runs*Orla Prendergast
  4. Ireland Women won by 6 wickets*Gaby Lewis

Statistics

Player of the SeriesScotland
Ireland
Leah Paul
Most RunsKathryn Bryce – 96 runs
(Best of 45*, 32.00 average, 85.71 SR)
Gaby Lewis – 116 runs
(Best of 49, 29.00 average, 116.00 SR)
Most WicketsKatie McGill – 7 wickets
(Best of 3/18, 14.42 average, 6.73 Economy)
Leah Paul – 9 wickets
(Best of 4/16, 4.44 average, 4.44 Economy)

Major Takeaways

This series was a low-scorer with scores of 87-9 vs 76/10, 137/4 vs 76/10, 134/8 vs 93/10, & 99/7 vs 101/4 in the 20-over contest.

Scotland

  • The trio of Kathryn Bryce (3.3-0-8-2), Katherine Fraser (4-0-15-2), & Katie McGill (4-0-18-3) starred in Scotland’s only win as Ireland failed to chase even 88 runs.
  • Unfortunately, Kathryn Bryce was the lone fighter in the series with scores of 12 (26), 17 (23), 45* (42) & 22 (21) to go along with 5 wickets.

Ireland

  • Leah Paul was the standout performer of the series, with figures of 4/16, 2/12, and 3/12. Scotland never got going against the left-arm spinner.
  • Gaby Lewis was the only Irish player who had a decent outing with the bat. 47 (39) in the 2nd ODI & 49 (40) in the fourth ODI were match winning knocks. Decent support from Laura Delany & Shauna Kavanaugh as well.
  • Orla Prendergast set the tone for the Irish bowlers in each of the games with a miserly economy rate of 4.15 to go along with six wickets.

Where Do They Go Here From Now?

No international matches scheduled for Scotland or Ireland women in the near future, but exciting times for Women’s Cricket.

India-England Tests will begin on June 16th while the Women’s Hundred will commence on 21st July.

Anyway, what did you think about the Scotland Women Tour of Ireland 2021? COMMENT BELOW and engage in a conversation!

06/09/2021 Copyright @Nitesh Mathur, aka Nit-X bcd@brokencricketdreams.com

Netherlands Vs Scotland & Ireland 2021: The Dutch Claim Important ODI Super League Points As Ireland Disappoints

Netherlands Vs Scotland & Ireland 2021 Review.

The ODI Super League is well and truly on its way with the Netherlands registering a 2-1 victory against Ireland. Each of the 13 teams has now at least played one ODI series (3 matches) on their way to 24 games.

In case you missed these two series, here is a brief recap and major takeaways.

Also Read: Bangladesh Tours of NZ & Sri Lanka Review, Ireland Vs Afghanistan Series Review

Scotland tour of Netherlands ODI Series: 1-1 Drawn

  1. Netherlands won by 14 runs
  2. Scotland won by 6 wickets

Scotland-Netherlands Statistics

ScotlandNetherlands
Most RunsGeorge Munsey – 106 runs
(best of 79*, 106.00 average, 79.69 SR)
Max O’Dowd – 90 runs
(best of 82, 45.00 average, 77.58 SR)
Most WicketsAlasdair Evans – 6 wickets
(best of 5/43, 11.16 average, 4.27 Economy)
Vivian Kingma – 5 wickets
(best of 3/21, 8.80 average, 2.93 economy)

Netherlands tour of Ireland ODI Series: Netherlands Win 2-1

  1. Netherlands won by 1 run*Timm van der Gugten
  2. Ireland won by 8 wickets*Josh Little
  3. Netherlands won by 4 wickets*Stephan Myburgh

Netherlands-Ireland Statistics

Player of the SeriesNetherlands
Logan van Beek
Ireland
Most RunsStephen Myburgh – 105 runs
(best of 74, 50s-1, 35.00 average, 60.69 SR)
Paul Stirling – 126 runs
(best of 69, 50s-2, 42.00 average, 69.23 SR)
Most WicketsLogan van Beek – 6 wickets
(best of 4/18, 12.42 average, 2.96 Economy)
Josh Little – 8 wickets
(best of 4/39, 13.25 average, 3.53 Economy)

Major Takeaways

Here are some of the highlights of the Netherlands Vs Scotland & Ireland 2021 series.

Scotland

  • Alasdair Evans was the hero of the second ODI. His figures of 9.4-2-43-5 limited Netherlands to 171.
  • George Munsey did the rest with an unbeaten 79 (119). After a brief collapse, the 106* run partnership with Dylan Budge took Scotland across the line.
  • The experienced duo of captain Kyle Coetzer & Calum MacLeod had a sub-par series. Coetzer mustering a total of 26 runs & MacLeod with just 14.

Netherlands

  • Max O’Dowd successfully established himself at the top of the Dutch batting order with a match-winning 82 (102) in the first ODI vs Scotland. A couple of decent 20-30s in the low scoring Ireland series as well. Averages 55.00 in his young 7-ODI career so far.
  • Tim van der Gugten was the difference between the two sides in the Ireland series. In the first ODI, his 49 (60) with 4 sixes in the first ODI took Netherlands from 102-7 to a competitive total of 195. Netherlands won by 1 run.
  • In the 3rd ODI against Ireland, experienced campaigner Stephen Myburgh took Netherlands home with a 74 (111) to get them across the line in an uneasy chase of 166. At 37, he may not have a long career ahead, but he is contributing to the Dutch cause one game at a time.

Ireland

  • Paul Stirling is the best ODI batsman since the pandemic. He has definitely slowed down from his aggressive instinct, but his consistency has hit great strides. 2 fifties this series to go along with his 3 centuries post-COVID. Playing a lone hand at the top.
  • George Dockrell & William Porterfield make their ODI comebacks. Dockrell, the left arm spinner, has resurrected his career as a #5 all-rounder. He scored a 40 in the 3rd ODI but could not carry on. Former captain Porterfield had a rough outing with scores of 0 & 5. End of a glorious career or does he have one more World Cup campaign in him? Another Irish legend Kevin O’Brien replaced Porterfield at the top of the order for the 3rd ODI.
  • The bowling was one of the few shining lights for Ireland. Josh Little returned with figures of 3/36, 4/39, & 1/35 & Craig Young with 3/34 & 9.2-2-18-4 in the 2nd ODI. Good support by Barry McCarthy, Simi Singh, & Andy McBrine as well.
  • Boyd Rankin, famous for representing both Ireland & England in Test cricket, hung up his boots at the age of 36. Debuting back in 2007, he was one of their first actual pace bowlers. 2007 & 2011 World Cups, 2013-14 Ashes, and finally the Ireland Test debut in 2018, he witnessed it all. Have a great second innings!

ODI Super League Status

Ireland are reeling at #10, with only 2 wins from 9 matches, having lost 1-2 vs England & 0-3 vs Afghanistan already. They would have wanted 30 points (3-0) from the Netherlands series, but lost 2 games.

Netherlands are at #9 with 20 points (2/3 wins). Although there is still a long time to go, with Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Ireland struggling (and South Africa currently at #12), Netherlands have a shot at direct qualification.

In any case, Ireland & Netherlands are finally getting their share of cricket they need to go to the next level. Unfortunately, Scotland barely missed out on ODI status and are not guaranteed many ODIs.

Where Do They Go From Here?

Ireland

Ireland have already completed 3 ODI Super League series, the most among any team. They are due for two more series later in the year:

  • South Africa are scheduled to tour Ireland for 3 ODIs & 3 T20Is (July 2021)
  • Then, Zimbabwe tour Ireland for 3 ODIs & 5 T20Is (August 2021)

An ODI series against West Indies is penned for January 2022. Finally, they also have to reschedule the COVID-postponed series against Bangladesh and New Zealand.

Netherlands

Although Netherlands do not have any immediate matches scheduled, the ODI Super League guarantees them 3-match ODI series against South Africa (September), Afghanistan (December), New Zealand (January 2022), England (May 2022).

Series cancelled due to COVID-19 will be scheduled later against Pakistan, West Indies, Zimbabwe.

Netherlands, Ireland, & Scotland have all qualified for the 2021 T20 World Cup, so we will see a glimpse of them later in the year.

What did y’all think about the Netherlands Vs Scotland & Ireland 2021 series? Let us know below!

06/09/2021 – Copyright @Nit-X, aka Nitesh Mathur bcd@brokencricketdreams.com