Cricket: Murali cameo shows his class

Muttiah Muralitharan bowling against Auckland in the shortened match at Colin Maiden Park yesterday. He took 2-15, including top scorer Martin Guptill. Photo / Dean Purcell

It was a day of dramatic finishes as the T20 season began yesterday.

Everywhere, that is, but Auckland, where the home side made light work of a Wellington team including the legendary Muttiah Muralitharan in a rain-affected 12-over contest.

Muralitharan might be playing for pocket-money by today's standards - his cameo for the capital side comes at about $2000 an appearance - but there was nothing budget about his three-over spell.

He took 2-15 and his wickets included top scorer Martin Guptill (46 from 32), who looked as if he was facing a World XI when Murali was on, a high school 2nd XI at all other times.

"He was quite tough," Guptill said after Auckland's 10-run victory. "He managed to get a couple turning square.

"He turns it massively so we were content to try to get about a run a ball off him and attack the others."

Guptill said it was a huge boost for the HRV Cup to have a player of the quality of Muralitharan appearing.

"Guys are going to get better just from having the opportunity to face him."

Given their time restraints, Auckland pottered along as they tried to compile a meaningful total.

The in-form Brad Cachopa was no match for the most prolific test wicket-taker of all time and it was almost a relief when he was bowled for 3.

However, Guptill and Pakistani import Azhar Mahmood (29 off 17) cruised to 64-1 off eight overs without any sense of urgency before pushing the "go" button.

Guptill's dismissal, walking past a wide from Muralitharan, sparked a collapse, with Mahmood brilliantly run out by Jesse Ryder two balls later and Colin Munro bowled by Andy McKay for a duck.

A few Colin de Grandhomme (17 off 9) blows pushed Auckland to 116-5 and Guptill was always confident it would be enough "with the quality of our attack".

It wasn't an overly frightening chase in normal circumstances, but in the gloom against the most consistent bowling attack in the competition, it was tough enough.

Michael Pollard (41 off 26) and James Franklin (19 off 10), kept Wellington in the hunt, but a horror three-over stretch from the eighth to the 10th over where they lost three wickets while compiling just 16 runs, killed them off.

Elsewhere, a six off the last ball of the match sealed a sensational win for Otago over 2009-10 champions Central Districts.

New Zealand captain Ross Taylor had earlier rescued CD from a perilous 38-3, with a bludgeoned 95 from 49 balls against Otago at Dunedin's University Oval. He hit three fours and eight sixes in his knock that ended on the final ball of the 19th over. CD ended up posting 158-7.

Almost inevitably, it was Taylor's rival for the national captaincy this year, Brendon McCullum, who led the Otago chase. His well-paced 79, scored just two days after taking a ball on the beak from Brett Lee while playing for Brisbane in the Big Bash, included five sixes.

That laid the groundwork for Otago's win but it was Jimmy Neesham (34no off 18) and Derek de Boorder who stole the show.

With one Graham Napier delivery remaining, Otago needed five to win and de Boorder, facing his first ball, lifted it over the ropes for the win.

In Rangiora, Tim Southee performed his standard last-over heroics to get Northern Districts home against Canterbury.

Needing 12 runs to pass ND's 161, Southee restricted Andy Ellis and Brendon Diamanti to five singles and a two.

BJ Watling laid the base for the visitors' total with 75 in 69 balls. Hamish Marshall (30 off 16) and Scott Styris (23 off 13) made sure ND did not get bogged down.