Trent Boult took a hat-trick in the 2019 ICC World Cup clash against Australia at Lord's but Mitchell Starc's five-wicket haul gave the five-time champions a big win.
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In the last couple of years, the Trans-Tasman rivalry has acquired an edge among fans in ODIs. The Chappell-Hadlee Trophy is a see-saw affair, with New Zealand and Australia winning it in their respective countries each time. The World Cup rivalry has taken on a different edge. New Zealand won in 1999 before Australia dominated in 2003, 2007 and 2011. In 2015, the rivalry reached a new crescendo.
Trent Boult took 5/24 to reduce Australia to 152 all out in the 2015 match in Auckland. In response, Mitchell Starc’s 6/28 almost gave Australia a big win. But, Kane Williamson’s iciness and his six off Pat Cummins gave Australia a big win. Starc and Boult would end up as the joint highest wicket-takers in the 2015 ICC World Cup. However, Australia would win the World Cup in front of their fans while New Zealand would come up second best.
Starc and Boult would be at it in the 2019 ICC World Cup. The match at Lord’s would see Boult weave his magic, only for Mitchell Starc to bounce back and show his class in World Cups
New Zealand were unbeaten in the tournament so far. Australia had lost to India in a high-voltage clash at The Oval. Australia chose to bat and they were in trouble at 92/5. Boult, Lockie Ferguson and Jimmy Neesham all took wickets to wreck the Australian top order. Alex Carey and Usman Khawaja strung a solid partnership of 107 for the sixth wicket.
It was the enterprising stand between Khawaja and Carey that gave Australia hope. Khawaja notched up his fifty and looked good for a hundred. Carey was the more aggressive batsman and he smashed 11 fours with a strike-rate of 98. When he fell for 71, Australia still had not crossed 200. Khawaja found a good ally in Pat Cummins as Australia were eyeing 250.
There is a saying that Lightning never strikes the same place twice. But, for Australia, the Lightning ‘Boult’ struck in a big way for the second time. He had done it to Australia at Auckland four years earlier. Now, he was about to repeat something spectacular in Lord’s.
Khawaja walked across and looked to muscle a full ball from Boult to the leg side. But, the left-hander missed and he was bowled. Mitchell Starc got a dose of his own medicine as he was cleaned up with an inswinging yorker from Boult. The hat-trick was achieved when Jason Behrendorff was trapped plumb in front. Boult became the second player in the 2019 World Cup after Mohammed Shami to take a hat-trick. The left-armer also became the first New Zealand player to take a hat-trick in the World Cup.
New Zealand bowled out Australia for 243. But, on a Lord’s deck that was giving assistance to the pace bowlers at the start, the Kiwis had to begin well. Behrendorff started the rot with the key wickets of Henry Nicholls and Martin Guptill. New Zealand tried to get a partnership going with Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor.
The duo stitched a solid stand of 55 for the third wicket. However, Starc struck a body blow as he removed Kane Williamson for 40. Taylor fell to Pat Cummins and New Zealand failed to build upon their good starts. From that point, New Zealand simply collapsed.
Starc ran through the tail to end with his third five-wicket haul in the World Cup. His 5/26 summed up as the leader of the attack. The left-arm bowler became the leading wicket-taker in the World Cup for Australia. New Zealand lost by 86 runs and they struggled for momentum in the World Cup after that.
New Zealand entered the final of the 2019 ICC World Cup as they knocked India out in the semi-final. Australia, on the other hand, were blown away by England in Edgbaston. This was Australia’s first loss against England after 27 years.
In the final, New Zealand and England played out a classic. Both teams were tied at the end of the match at Lord’s. The game went into the Super Over which was also tied. England were declared the winners due to a superior boundary count. It was the most heartbreaking way for New Zealand to lose a world title.
Lord’s was not a happy venue for New Zealand in the 2019 ICC World Cup. The loss to Australia, followed by the technicality against England saw Williamson’s dreams get dashed in cruel circumstances.
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