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Journalism of Courage
Twenty one overs bowled and the scorecard read 106/8. It was hard to believe the team on the field was three-time World Cup winners. Australia, one of the favourites to lift the trophy this year, were ordinary, with the bat, in Auckland. (Full Coverage| Points table| Fixtures)
So what went wrong for the Michael Clarke-led unit? Here’s a quick look at some:
The Vettori spell: Australia were cruising along after winning the toss. At one stage, they were 50/1 in just 5.4 overs. Everything was going Australia’s way before Vettori was brought into the attack. The crafty spinner suffocated the well-set David Warner, who was cruising in the middle. Vettori did the smart thing – contain from his end to allow the seamers to attack from the other. Result: Australia collapsed from 80/1 to 106/9.
Why Watson? Clarke’s return to the team forced a change in the playing XI. The Australian thin-tank, surprisingly, swapped Clarke with George Bailey and persisted with the struggling Shane Watson. The ideal choice should have been a swap between Watson and Clarke. Watson, during his painful 23 on Saturday, was lucky to get some easy pickings early on but once Vettori stuck to a tight line, he looked puzzled. During the period when the batting powerplay was there for the taking, Watson’s wicket triggered a collapse.
No application: From 80/2 to 106/8, it was pure callousness from the Australians. After Watson departed, David Warner should have carried on. And so should have either Glenn Maxwell or Mitchell Marsh. Returning to action after a long injury lay-off, Clarke was expected to hang in but he too surrendered to Trent Boult.
The early assault: Brendon McCullum once again went all out for glory and Aussies didn’t have an answer to his aggression. McCullum’s 24-ball 50 got the Kiwis off to a flying start. The aggressive right-hander tore the new bowlers apart, even Mitchell Johnson wasn’t spared. The fiery seamer accounted for 68 runs in 6 overs. That’s an economy of 11. New Zealand raced to 79 runs in 48 balls. The head start did cover up for the mid-innings collapse where Australia got their act together and came back strong with Mitchell Starc. A slow or watchful start could have changed the complexion of the game.
