Black Caps will be better for loss – Mitchell
Black Caps allrounder Daryl Mitchell is backing his side to rebound after an underwhelming start to the home summer.
New Zealand were comprehensively outplayed in a seven-wicket loss to England in the first game of the five-match Twenty20 series at Christchurch’s Hagley Oval yesterday.
It was a sluggish start to a huge summer of cricket, which also sees India and Australia visit these shores.
With a quick turnaround before tomorrow’s second T20 in Wellington, New Zealand don’t have long to address their issues.
T20 is a volatile format and Mitchell felt they would be better for the hit-out with England having had two T20 warmups under their belt against a New Zealand XI.
The Black Caps were well below their best, posting 153-5 from their 20 overs, which looked about 20 runs light.
They were able to develop several promising partnerships – three over 30 runs – but every time they threatened to get away, England produced a key breakthrough.
New Zealand failed to take early wickets and England, anchored by 59 from man-of-the-match James Vince and supporting knocks from skipper Eoin Morgan (34 not out) and opener Jonny Bairstow (35), eased home with nine balls to spare.
‘‘I guess you learn in professional sport that you keep backing your skills,’’ said Mitchell, who scored 30 not out. ‘‘It’s only one game of cricket. I don’t think we were too far off at the end of the day.
‘‘Sunday at the Cake Tin [Westpac Stadium] is going to be exciting and T20 cricket, hopefully two players can come off [with the bat] and get us the win. That’s all it really takes.’’
New Zealand started slowly with the bat, being 7-1 after three overs, with opener Martin Guptill’s concerning form, stretching back to the Cricket World Cup, continuing. Guptill chopped on off debutant Sam Curran for two, heaping more pressure on his shoulders.
At various times in the New Zealand innings, Colin Munro, Tim Seifert, Colin de Grandhomme, Ross Taylor and Mitchell all looked capable of taking it to the English attack, but they weren’t able to get away on them.
England would have been delighted to go into the innings break chasing 154. They never looked in any real trouble in a comfortable run chase.
‘‘It was tough to start on. It was a bit two-paced and a bit slow,’’ Mitchell said of the Hagley wicket.
‘‘We lost a few wickets straight after the power play which halted our momentum a little bit for a while and we had to play catch-up.
‘‘Once you get set, it becomes a bit easier, but fair play to England – they adapted better than us.’’
Mitchell will be glued to the television tonight with his father, former All Blacks coach John Mitchell, hoping to help guide the English rugby team to the World Cup title against South Africa. Mitchell is defence coach for England and he was integral in assisting them to a 19-7 win over the All Blacks in the semifinal last Saturday.
‘‘I’ll be supporting the old man. It’s an exciting time for the family.’’
John Mitchell is a keen cricket nut. Daryl said his father was never shy of giving the England rugby players, many who are are keen cricket fans, a hard time.
‘‘He said he was going to try [and watch the first T20] and give a few of the England [rugby] boys a bit of stick when they’re sitting there watching it together. He loves his cricket, so it’s cool.’’
Vince, who played two matches for
ENGLAND
J Bairstow c Guptill b Santner ................................ 35 D Malan c Sodhi b Santner ........................................ 11 J Vince c Guptill b Santner ....................................... 59 E Morgan not out .......................................................... 34 S Billings not out ............................................................ 14 Extras (1w) ............................................................................ 1 Total (for 3 wkts, 18.3 overs) ................................. 154 Fall: 37 (Malan), 68 (Bairstow), 122 (Vince). Bowling: T Southee 3.3-0-30-0 (1w), L Ferguson 4-0-28-0, S Kuggleleijn 3-0-35-0, M Santner 4-0-23-3, I Sodhi 4-0-38-0.
England won by seven wickets, lead five-match series 1-0.
Auckland in the T20 Super Smash last summer, kept the England score ticking over with 59 from 38 balls. It was a confidence-building win for the team, he said.
Many of their Cricket World Cup winning stars are resting up for the T20s before the two-match test series, and their fringe performers stepped up.
Vince was a member of England’s World Cup squad, but hasn’t been able to establish himself in the first-choice XI in any form.
Winning the first T20 would give them a huge boost for the rest of the series.
‘‘It will build a lot of confidence and belief in the group with a lot of the main players missing,’’ Vince said. ‘‘I think it will do wonders and hopefully we can continue the momentum on Sunday.’’