Story Ireland Summer 2013: NZ Test - McCullum ton

[Dipak]

Ok fearsome tweak! Losing to such a team and by such a margin in their first test would be so gut wrenching. The story would have been different had Ireland's tail wagged, but well done Irish!

 

[Champagnepapi]

they took too many risks nearly most of their team members were caught out opener's had the important job which they couldn't do well but all credit goes to the Aussie bowlers and fielders that didn't give a chance to the Irish man hope they comeback strongly for the next match

 

[Aislabie]

Preview: Ireland v. New Zealand Test Match

Barely two weeks after the conclusion of their inaugural Test, in which they ran the Australians mightily close, Ireland are to get their second taste of the format against a fairly weak New Zealand team. The Kiwis have struggled horribly in the last couple of years, relying heavily on imported players like Neil Wagner to fill their ranks. Ireland, who also have their fair share of ex-pats alongside a majority of born-and-raised locals, are heading the other way: on the up.

The details for the Test match are as follows:

July 6th-10th
Ireland v. New Zealand - Test match at Stormont, Belfast

The Irish squad sees a couple of additions for the more seamer-friendly conditions in Belfast, where Boyd Rankin is likely to be vital. The tall fast bowler retired from representing Ireland a little under a year ago to chase the dream of playing Test cricket, but with the elevation of his homeland he returned from his self-imposed exile. "I was quite worried about how everyone would be," he recalls, "but they all welcomed me back with open arms. They all understood what a difficult period it had been for me, and were as pleased as I was that I was back for the green."

For the Kiwis, much will rest on the shoulders of opening batsman Martin Guptill. He has been their most consistent batsman in the last year, and has regularly dug in for long periods to defy opposing attacks. This is at odds with his natural attacking flair, but in situations like the Kiwis find themselves in, it is vital that someone does so. The rest of the batting lineup is less versatile - his opening partner Brendon McCullum, and Ross Taylor almost always play aggressively, while Daniel Flynn and Kruger van Wyk between them have just four half-centuries in thirty-three Test matches.

Boyd Rankin might be too much for the New Zealanders to handle.​

The full squads are as follows:

Ireland (Form: L)
Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Trent Johnston, Ed Joyce, Kevin O'Brien, Niall O'Brien, William Porterfield (captain), Boyd Rankin, Max Sorensen, Paul Stirling, Stuart Thompson, Albert van der Merwe, Andrew White, Gary Wilson

There is one addition to the Irish squad for the previous Test, with Stuart Thompson joining the team. He has impressed hugely with the ball in his limited opportunities so far, and may make his full international debut in this Test. It is likely that either he or Trent Johnston will replace Albert van der Merwe; Stormont is somewhere that you tend not to play two spinners.

New Zealand (Form: LDLLL)
Brent Arnel, Trent Boult, Doug Bracewell, Daniel Flynn, Martin Guptill, Brendon McCullum, Jeetan Patel, Ross Taylor (captain), Kruger van Wyk, Daniel Vettori, Neil Wagner, Kane Williamson

You cannot deny that the New Zealand squad is under-strength. Their policy to move on from Chris Martin for this tour of the British Isles sparked some surprise, especially in the wake of Tim Southee's continued absence through injury. Also, an injury to James Franklin has left the batting department looking shaky too. Jeetan Patel is likely to miss out for this game.
​

 

[CG123]

You've listed 11 New Zealand players, and five of them are specialist bowlers. Have you forgot to put a someone there (BJ Watling?), because you said Jeetan Patel is likely to miss out.

This should be a good match, and we might actually be able to win a test!

 

[Aislabie]

You've listed 11 New Zealand players, and five of them are specialist bowlers. Have you forgot to put a someone there (BJ Watling?), because you said Jeetan Patel is likely to miss out.

This should be a good match, and we might actually be able to win a test!

Good spot, someone is in the brain but not the list. Will add him in now...

 

[qpeedore]

After giving the Aussies such a close call, I expect the NZ match to be even closer. Maybe even a win for Ireland if they play well. This is an extremely important match. In-story, it's all about the confidence of the Irish after pushing Australia and getting past the first-ever Test nerves. Now they face a team ranked much lower than Australia. In terms of sim...they're pretty much even, aren't they?

Definitely going to be a very interesting match either way.

 

[Aislabie]

Rampant Rankin Runs Through Tail

Ireland made a very unexpected change to their team, bringing Stuart Thompson into the side not for Albert van der Merwe, but for Paul Stirling. At the toss, William Porterfield said, "It's tough for Paul, but at the end of the day he's more of a limited overs player at the moment. On this surface, we felt that an extra bowler would be more important than an extra batter." The away dressing room, though, was full of the same eleven players that everyone expected, Jeetan Patel not quite making the cut.

Martin Guptill walked out with Brendon McCullum at his side. He pushed his second ball into the covers and called McCullum through for a sharp single. Unfortunately for Guptill, the Irish captain picked up cleanly and threw down the stumps at the bowler's end to end hit stay before it had really started. Kane Williamson at number three came in and played positively straight away. He belted five fours and a glorious six, not really bothering to rotate the strike. After that six, George Dockrell could have lost his head, but tossed the ball right up. It gripped and turned enough to clip the outside edge and Williamson was gone.

Throughout all of this, Brendon McCullum, so well known as an aggressor, was playing calmly and accumulating his runs. Taylor at the other end milked the spinners quite easily, and by the time the spinners were replaced by the fast men, he had his eye well and truly in. He played a selection of nice drives and cuts to take him into the forties. When Alex Cusack came back on, though, he brought something new into play by angling the ball right into the right hander. He managed to get a beautiful delivery to bisect the skipper's bat and pad to rearrange his stumps.

Brendon McCullum made the most of his chance to open the innings, playing the anchor role when wickets fell.​

The new man was Daniel Vettori, re-introduced to the side in the unfamiliar number five position. He played very cautiously, rotating the strike while McCullum notched up his fifty, and moved on more positively. He started finding the boundary more and more and was really beginning to flow when the rain came, eliminating the last overs of the first day. When the morning came around, Vettori became Alex Cusack's second victim, before Daniel Flynn got in and got out. As everyone from seven to ten were dismissed for single figures, mostly to Boyd Rankin's pace and bounce, Brendon McCullum cut loose. He brought up his century with an audacious scoop over the 'keeper. He eventually fell for a fantastic 134, last man out.

Jeetan Patel, the man who missed out, was full of praise for McCullum. "That's as good a century as you'll ever see," he told Charles Colvile for Sky Sports, "He read the situation perfectly, and has the runs to prove it."

NEW ZEALAND 1st innings

Player              Status                        Runs  Blls  4s   6s    S/R
Martin Guptill      run out (Porte'ield)            0     2    0    0    0.0%
Brendon McCullum    lbw            b. Thompson    134   313   27    0   42.8%
Kane Williamson     c. Wilson      b. Dockrell     30    41    5    1   73.2%
Ross Taylor                        b. Cusack       47    92    9    0   51.1%
Daniel Vettori                     b. Cusack       22    81    4    0   27.2%
Daniel Flynn                       b. Merwe        24    66    4    0   36.4%
Kruger van Wyk      c. Porte'ield  b. Rankin        5    16    1    0   31.3%
Doug Bracewell      lbw            b. Merwe         8    13    2    0   61.5%
Neil Wagner         c. Wilson      b. Rankin        9    16    2    0   56.3%
Trent Boult         c. Wilson      b. Rankin        0     4    0    0    0.0%
Brent Arnel         not out                         9    22    2    0   40.9%
 
 Total:  299/10       Overs:  110.4        Run Rate:  2.70     Extras:  11 

                                     -X-

IRELAND Bowling

Player               Overs   Mdns    Runs   Wkts      E/R    Wds    NBs
Boyd Rankin          23.0      8      67      3      2.91     0      1 
Stuart Thompson      15.4      6      35      1      2.23     1      0 
Alex Cusack          14.0      4      36      2      2.57     0      0 
Kevin O'Brien        15.0      7      29      0      1.93     1      0 
George Dockrell      17.0      3      64      1      3.76     0      0 
Albert van der Merwe 21.0      7      51      2      2.43     0      1 
Andrew White          5.0      3      10      0      2.00     0      0 


 EXTRAS          Wides: 2      No Balls: 2      Leg Byes: 6      Byes: 1

​

 

[Champagnepapi]

Irish bowling top form but it is the batting so far that let them down hope this time openers make most of the chance by making a good partnership.

 

[CG123]

Really good innings there from McCullum. New Zealand's five prong bowling attack should be good enough to not get troubled too much by Ireland.