**Official** New Zealand in England

[wpdavid]

NZ are just letting this slip a bit higher than they should be. Anderson should be going for more than 23 off 7.5 overs on this pitch.

And there's a Jimmy of a long hop to relieve the pressure a little.
A RRR of 5.7 isn't a problem at this stage though.

 

[Richard]

Requiring a-run-a-ball over more than a handful of overs is never a formality. Once you get to that, it's advantage bowling team, and batting team's responsibility to wrest it back.

 

[wpdavid]

Gee Styris is using up a few lives today.

Beyond that, even with Flynn gone, NZ should be OK. Apart from any other considerations, they'll have 9 overs from Wright/Collingwood/Bopara in conditions that will give them nothing.

 

[Richard]

Gee Styris is using up a few lives today.

TBF that didn't carry - quite.

Beyond that, even with Flynn gone, NZ should be OK. Apart from any other considerations, they'll have 9 overs from Wright/Collingwood/Bopara in conditions that will give them nothing.

If Anderson can be economical, so can Collingwood, who is comfortably > Wright and Bopara, who are both woeful.

BTW you'd guess Anderson will bowl out now, having had 9.

Half-century for Styris, one of the most fortunate you'll ever see.

 

[wpdavid]

If Anderson can be economical, so can Collingwood, who is comfortably > Wright and Bopara, who are both woeful.

BTW you'd guess Anderson will bowl out now, having had 9.

Half-century for Styris, one of the most fortunate you'll ever see.

And now he's set when the part-timers come on.
The thing about most of our bowlers is that there will probably be at least one four-ball an over, so even at this stage NZ won't be falling far behind. Looks like Swann's the key bowler right now.

EDIT
So he immediately concedes 5 wides

 

[Nate]

Half-century for Styris, one of the most fortunate you'll ever see.

 

[Richard]

Well, apart from those Andrew Symonds tends to get pretty much every time he walks to the crease in a Test, obviously.

 

[wpdavid]

BTW you'd guess Anderson will bowl out now, having had 9.

Apparently not.
This is a game when you'd really want to be confident in KP's bowling given what Swann's got from the pitch.

 

[Richard]

The thing about most of our bowlers is that there will probably be at least one four-ball an over, so even at this stage NZ won't be falling far behind.

Most of the four-balls that've been bowled today have been missed though.

 

[KiWiNiNjA]

Sheez, Oram onto 20 in no time.

 

[wpdavid]

Most of the four-balls that've been bowled today have been missed though.

Not now. Oram looks in prime nick, but conditions are dead set for him

 

[Richard]

Haha, re-watching the wickets and noticing the proliferation of "caaaaatch"s I spotted for the first time today that 7 out of 10 England wickets fell to catches. Plus 2 run-outs and 1 bowled.

 

[Richard]

Not now. Oram looks in prime nick, but conditions are dead set for him

2 of the 3 fours he's just hit weren't four-balls, they were just good balls manufactured to the boundary.

This is what top-class ODI batsmen might've been doing most of today, well as NZ bowled in patches it was obvious even from mediocre performers like Bopara and Shah the possibilities.

 

[Richard]

Ravindrath Bopara on, lawd help us.

 

[KiWiNiNjA]

13, 8, and 9 runs off the last 3 overs with no risks.

 

[wpdavid]

Ravindrath Bopara on, lawd help us.

Yeah, our goose is looking well & truly cooked now. Doesn't help when professional cricketers can't catch the bloody ball. Or when they bat as poorly as most of our guys did. Shouldn't be a surprise, but a smidgen of competence would be nice once in a while.

 

[Richard]

Not to worry, we'll win the last ODI then somehow fluke a win over SA and all will be well again for the next 2 years.

BTW, when on 30 Oram averaged exactly 40 in his last 25 innings (34 games) against ODI-standard teams from the 2005/06 season. Pretty impressive for someone who up to 2005 had averaged 17.57.

 

[Richard]

Right, back after that database-error period, 2 wickets go down during't. Still, NZ just about in t'driving-seat, but these two needed to add at least another 20. Which they haven't. Poor stroke from Vettori.

 

[Richard]

NZ have seriously messed this up. Asking a hell of a lot of Kyle Mills to play a 2nd match-turning knock in 2 games.

 

[social]

Complete implosion by the Kiwis - a couple of overs ago they were on easy street and it's basically been their crap cricket that's done it