Reuters
Napier, March 8: The Kiwis were again at their marauding best as they made short work of the World Cup debutants, Afghanistan, by defeating them by six wickets and in that process registered their fifth win on the trot in this edition of the multinational tournament at McLean Park, Sunday.
Afghanistan was under pressure from the very first ball after they had decided to bat first. Veteran left arm spinner Daniel Vettori (4/18) was the leader of the pack as he dished out one of the most economical spells of the World Cup and became the first kiwi to take 300 wickets in ODIs. He along with pacer Trent Boult (3/34) wrecked havoc and reduced the Afghans to 59-6 before Samiulla Shenwari (54, 110b, 5×4, 1×6) and Najibullah Zadran (56, 56b, 8×4, 2×6) stitched together a partnership of 86 runs and provided some respectability to the score. Adam Milne broke the partnership by getting Zadran caught of his bowling and the tail enders couldn’t carry on the good work as they were bundled out for 186 runs.
New Zealand started the chase on an electric note as Brendon McCullum (42, 19b, 6×4, 1×6) seemed in a hurry to finish off the game. His opening partner Martin Guptill (56, 76b, 7×4) was calmer in his approach as he looked to anchor the innings. After Mohammad Nabi stopped McCullum in his stride by rattling the woodwork, Kane Williamson (33, 45b, 4×4) and Guptill got their act together and guided the score past the 100 run mark.
They however weren’t able to close down the match as the Afghans delayed the inevitable by scalping the duo. Ross Taylor and Corey Anderson were made to bite their time in the middle but were successful in seeing the innings through. This win guarantees the Kiwis the top spot in Pool-A and strengthens their claim of being the tournament favourites.
Brief scores
Afghanistan 186 (Najibullah Zadran 56, Samiulla Shenwari 54; Daniel Vettori 4/18, Trent Boult 3/34) lost to New Zealand 188 for four (Guptill 57, McCullum 42) beat by six wickets
