Ross Taylor (102) and Tom Latham (108) score centuries as New Zealand beat Board President's XI by 33 runs in second warm-up match in build-up to the three-match one-day international series against India from Sunday
After losing the first warm-up match by 30 runs, New Zealand came back strongly in the second yesterday thanks to centuries from Ross Taylor (102 retired out) and Tom Latham (108 retired out) to emerge with a 33-run win over the Board President's XI (BP XI) at the Cricket Club of India's Brabourne Stadium.
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NZ's Ross Taylor celebrates his 100 against Board President's XI at the Brabourne Stadium yesterday. PICS/SURESH KARKERA
Electing to bat first on a good surface, the Blackcaps got into the right rhythm with Martin Guptill and Colin Munro adding 46 runs for the opening stand. The partnership was brought to an end by Saurashtra pacer Jaydev Unadkat. Munro (26) found BP XI skipper Shreyas Iyer at mid-on while attempting to go over him.
Willamson falls to spin
BP XI introduced spin as early as the eighth over. The move got the better of Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson (1). After surviving on three occasions, two of which included dropped catches by Avesh Khan and Shahbaz Nadeem, Guptill's (32) stay at the crease came to an end, courtesy Karn Sharma. A tossed up delivery was hit straight back at him.
From 73-3, the seasoned Taylor and Latham steered the visitors out of trouble. The duo added 166 in 137 balls for the fourth wicket. Taylor, in particular, was clinical with his shot selection. He reached his century in 81 balls, an innings that was decorated with 14 boundaries and a solitary hit over the fence.
On an otherwise pretty ordinary day in the fielding department for BP XI, skipper Iyer made up for a dropped catch earlier, as he timed his jump to perfection to pull off a brilliant one-handed effort at mid-off to send Henry Nicholls (24) packing off Unadkat. The Kiwis posted a stiff 344-run target to test the hosts.
Board President's XI pacer Jaydev Unadkat (left) celebrates the wicket of New Zealand's Henry Nicholls at Brabourne Stadium yesterday
Unadkat shines
Unadkat was the pick of the bowlers with his 4-57. "The way I was bowling in the IPL gave me a lot of confidence. Sometimes, it's all about confidence for a bowler. I'm looking to be in good rhythm and am confident of bowling exactly what I want to bowl. It's coming out of the hand nicely and that's what is important as bowler who hits the deck hard, looks to swing the ball early and with variations," Unadkat, who breached the 20-wicket barrier in the IPL this year, said.
BP XI's run chase began quite poorly with Mumbai batting prodigy Prithvi Shaw (22) failing to find his mojo to follow his 66 in the first match. He was among Mitchell Santner's three wickets. The visitors dominated the entire match, but BP XI had their chances.
After's Karun Nair (53), Shreyas Iyer (24) and Gurkeerat Mann (65) led a strong resistance, the duo of Unadkat (44) and Karn (19) had the spectators on the edge of their seats in the dying moments of the match. Their 71-run stand was broken by Tim Southee.
After Karn's exit, it was just a matter of time before BP XI were bowled out. They made for 310 in 47.1 overs.
Jaydev excels with bat too
"I added a new dimension to my game. I was batting well since the last two seasons in domestic (cricket), and I'm happy that it's coming off well on the bigger stage. Today's innings is a huge confidence-booster. I'm definitely looking to add that dimension (of batting) to my game because that is what is the need of the hour — a bowler who can bat and slog well is always beneficial to any team," said Unadkat when asked if batting was something he was particularly working on.
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