Matt Henry celebrates taking the wicket of Kusal Perera. Photo / Getty Images
Matt Henry celebrates taking the wicket of Kusal Perera. Photo / Getty Images
COMMENT:
The most impressive aspect of New Zealand's rout of Sri Lanka in their World Cup opener wasn't the 10-wicket victory margin or that it would've done wonders for the team's net run-rate in a tournament sure to be affected by weather.
It was the fact that one of themajor unknowns of the past few weeks has been answered loud and clear in a touch more than 45 overs - the Black Caps have the depth of squad to go deep at this tournament.
When they woke up on Saturday, neither Matt Henry nor Colin Munro would probably have expected to play at Sophia Gardens, yet they were thrust into the crucial opening bowler and batsman roles due to Tim Southee and Henry Nicholls' respective injuries.
Henry was the star of the show, setting the pace with early wickets and, more importantly, bouncing back from the pasting he took in the final warm-up game against the West Indies in Bristol.
Yes, the track was green and the Sri Lankan batting wasn't proactive and assertive enough to put the pressure on our bowlers, but as a bowler, you still have to put the ball in the right areas and Henry was relentless in his line and length, hitting the top of off stump and getting plenty of seam movement.
We bowled in partnerships, exerting pressure from both ends, and with the possible exception of Jimmy Neesham, who was a little wayward, everyone played their part.
Even more encouraging was the variation on display - Ferguson's pace, coming wide of the wicket, while Henry was much closer to the stumps. Boult will swing it most days and Neesham, de Grandhomme and Santner offered that change of pace.
We were expecting big scores in this World Cup but so far we've seen the opposite – with the ball often dominating the bat. It could be because of the playing surfaces still being reasonably fresh, with batsmen gradually starting to take charge later in the competition. The one exception is the Oval where England and Bangladesh have posted imposing 300-plus scores (both against South Africa).
With the bat, I was most impressed with Munro. He has been struggling recently but in Cardiff, he was calculated and focused. Both Munro and Martin Guptill were very proactive in structuring their innings. There was a fair bit in the track for the bowlers and instead of sitting back waiting for the loose deliveries, which can often lead to a dismissal, the pair used their feet, forcing the Sri Lankan bowlers to adjust.
Martin Guptill celebrates with team mates after catching Sri Lanka batsman Kusal Mendis off the bowling of Matt Henry. Photo / Getty Images
Having Guptill at the other end undoubtedly helped Munro. They've played together a lot for Auckland and are good mates. At the same time, Munro's aggressive intent takes a lot of pressure off Guptill in a similar way that former captain and opener Brendon McCullum did in 2015. I have no doubt that Munro needs to be at the top of the order, which then poses the question of how our middle order stacks up with Nicholls under an injury cloud.
We next face Bangladesh and Afghanistan, both matches the Black Caps will be expected to win, though Bangladesh beat us in the Champions Trophy in 2017 with both Shakib al Hasan and Mahmudullah getting 100s. They're also fresh off a big win against the South Africans and will play with confidence and freedom. The recipe to beating them is simple, however - shut down their match-winners al Hasan, Mushfiqur, Tamim and Mahmudullah and you win the game.
The performances of Henry and Munro creates an interesting dilemma for Gary Stead but it's a position any head coach would want to be in.
We don't know yet quite how serious the injuries to Southee and Nicholls are, but with the victory in the bag, we can take our time in reintroducing the pair into action.
Injuries happen in World Cups but as long as the players coming into the starting line-up perform well, like Munro and Henry have, the Black Caps will be a major force.
Grant Elliott played 83 ODI matches for New Zealand and was named Man of the Match in the 2015 World Cup semifinal win over South Africa at Eden Park. Elliott will co-host ANZ Sports Scene with Marc Peard for the duration of the 2019 Cricket World Cup.
