Cricket: We needed one good stand, says Fleming

By RICHARD BOOCK in Port Elizabeth

The pillars of New Zealand's batting picked the worst possible time to turn to sand yesterday, leaving their side just one game away from almost certain elimination from the World Cup.

After three weeks of compelling batting, the top order faltered just when they needed to be at their strongest, handing Australia a ridiculously easy 96-run win. "We needed one decent partnership," skipper Stephen Fleming lamented.

The result means New Zealand, if they are to avoid becoming the ninth side to bow out of the tournament, have to beat a fired-up Indian team at Centurion tomorrow, or hope for an unlikely series of upsets between Kenya, Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka.

To add insult to injury for the New Zealanders, the loss arrived only a couple of hours after Shane Bond had scythed through the Australian batting line-up to finish with six for 23, the best one-day international performance by a New Zealander, the best against Australia and the fifth-best in the history of the World Cup.

Yet for all his success, the Black Caps could not finish off the Australians as Michael Bevan began another trademark salvage operation with his reliable sidekick, Andrew Bichel. The pair shared in a 97-run, eighth-wicket stand to breathe life back into the innings.

Bevan, who walked into the middle when Australia were struggling at 84 for seven, was finally out in the 48th over for 56.

Bichel followed in the 50th after striking a career-best 64 off 83 balls.

If the New Zealanders felt they had already seen too much of Bevan, it would be because he spoiled their party during a tri-series match at Melbourne last year after Australia had slumped to 82 for six. On that occasion he made an unbeaten 102.

This time around he was just as influential. Only eight days after snatching a win against England with a 73-run, ninth-wicket stand, "Bic and Bevo" made the most of New Zealand's dwindling bowling resources, surviving Bond before collecting a hatful of runs against Andre Adams and Jacob Oram.

Despite captain Stephen Fleming's best-laid plans, including bowling Daniel Vettori in the third over and some well thought-out fielding placements for Damien Martyn and Ricky Ponting, he could not budge the pair with the ammunition at his disposal.

"We just ran out of firepower," a disappointed Fleming said later. "They played very well to resurrect the innings and we just couldn't chip them out - and it's not the first time it's happened either.

"But I don't think we let it slip or relaxed or anything like that. They grabbed it from us.

"After Bondy had bowled out we needed Jacob Oram and Andre Adams to come in and do a job, but it wasn't to be."

Having scrapped through to 208, Australia then applied the blowtorch to New Zealand's batting, absorbing some early pressure before smashing the team over for a mere 112 in 30.1 overs, after another devastating spell of fast bowling from Brett Lee.

Returning for his second spell, Lee found the ball was reversing and proceeded to put the result beyond doubt, laying waste to the tail with a devastating spell of five for three in 15 balls.

But the biggest problem for the New Zealanders was the weak effort from the top order, which, Fleming apart, fell to a series of injudicious shots during the first 20 overs and left a huge responsibility in the hands of the skipper.

Fleming, eventually caught for 48, watched Vettori, Nathan Astle, Scott Styris, Chris Cairns and Lou Vincent depart before taking his leave, at which stage New Zealand were listing badly at 102 for six.

At that point, tournament veteran Chris Harris took over as spectator, observing from the non-striker's end as Brendon McCullum and Oram were yorked by consecutive Lee deliveries, and Adams and Bond were blown away soon after.

Questions were raised later about the need to open the batting with Vettori when the total was relatively modest, and the slightly gung-ho attitude of the top-order - especially Cairns, who perished to a wild shot from the crease.

"We might have been a little gung-ho; maybe it comes about a bit with anxiety at playing Australia," Fleming said. "Whatever it was, we weren't disciplined enough in our approach - we only needed one decent partnership and we would have been in."

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