Tim David produced one of the finest displays of power hitting to lift Australia to a dramatic six-wicket win over New Zealand in Wellington.
Australia’s T20 World Cup preparations looked like they would cop a body blow after they conceded 215 in the opening match of their three-game series against New Zealand after Rachin Ravindra went ballistic for the Black Caps.
But David blasted 31 off 10 deliveries in a sensational cameo after hometown hero Ravindra lashed six sixes in his 68 off 35 balls as New Zealand tallied 3-215 at Wellington’s Sky Stadium on Wednesday night.
Australia’s bowlers set an unwanted record in the process by becoming the first team ever to concede more than 200 in four consecutive T20 internationals.
Mitchell Marsh top-scored in Australia’s reply with a valiant 73 from 44 as they kept pace with the required run rate for most of their innings before David’s power hitting lifted them to glory.
They needed 43 from the final three overs but after they were kept relatively quiet by Lockie Ferguson, they took Adam Milne down for 18 off the penultimate over to need 15 off the last six deliveries from veteran Tim Southee.
David slapped a six over backward square leg off the fourth delivery, retained the strike with a two and then launched a superb drive through midwicket to beat the diving fielder on the rope to register the third-highest successful run-chase by Australia.
Travis Head bashed 24 off 15 before he fell to an excellent catch by Tim Southee at mid-on off Adam Milne and opening partner David Warner belted three sixes as he blasted his way to 32 but fell on the 20th delivery he faced when he tried to slog sweep Mitch Santner out of the ground but went no further than Glenn Phillips at long-on.
Glenn Maxwell also made a start to reach the boundary twice and clear it two more times in his 25 off 11 before he was bowled by Lockie Ferguson.
Josh Inglis struggled to hit top gear in his run-a-ball 20 before Ravindra snared a superb catch off Santner to send him on his way.
New Zealand openers Devon Conway (63 off 46) and Finn Allen (32 off 16) joined Ravindra in laying a base for the Kiwi total.
Phillips and Mark Chapman sealed the deal with fine cameos late after Santner won the toss and elected to bat.
Marsh, who wanted to field first, was pleased with that decision when Mitch Starc’s first over yielded just three runs and two decent chances. But from there on the Kiwis took control, led by Allen.
Glenn Maxwell felt Allen’s wrath with two horizontal bat down-the-ground sixes off consecutive balls, before Allen top-edged to the safe hands of Warner at midwicket off Starc.
It took four overs for the next boundary to arrive, when Conway slog-swept Maxwell for six square of the wicket. Ravindra joined the party the next over, picking Adam Zampa’s deliveries and punishing him.
He smashed the Australian spinner for six over midwicket, and then roared to a half-century in a later Zampa over when he clubbed three sixes and a four. The Wellingtonians put on 113 together, delighting a healthy crowd of over 20,000 at the caketin.
Pat Cummins then set a trap for Ravindra, who pulled a delivery to Starc on the boundary after earlier finding a boundary there. Conway followed Ravindra the next ball, also finding Starc behind the wicket.
While Phillips and Chapman were a cold pairing, joining each other at the crease without facing a ball, they found the middle of the bat in Australia’s pace-heavy late-innings bowling.
Neither Zampa (0-42 off three) and Maxwell (0-32 off two) were seen in the last five overs after expensive spells.
Australia went into the game without Steve Smith with selectors leaving the 34-year-old out of the XI. Doubts linger over whether the veteran will go to his fourth T20 World Cup, with this series being Australia’s last hitout before the June tournament.