Tag: Net run rate

Thrills, Spills and Net Run Rate Calculations

A look back at the final match in Group A at the Women’s T20 World Cup, a 20 second video of a hedgehog and a large photo gallery.

Today saw the final match in group A at the Women’s T20 World Cup. New Zealand faced Pakistan. New Zealand had an easily described task: win and the would be in the semi-finals. Pakistan faced a much more complex situation – they would need to win and win big – a narrow win for them would see India second on Net Run Rate. This post looks at back at the match.

TO CHASE OR TO SET

New Zealand won the toss and opted to bat first, hoping that the need to score ultra quickly in response would lead to a Pakistan collapse. Pakistan claimed that they would have chosen to bowl anyway. I reckon that the easiest way to achieve a big NRR swing is to bat first, put a big total up, and then dismiss the opponents. New Zealand in this case would have to keep going no matter how ridiculous the target. With New Zealand batting first Pakistan had to restrict them as much as possible – their task would be a tough one almost whatever New Zealand did.

THE NEW ZEALAND INNINGS

Pakistan bowled excellently, but their fielding was not great. There were times when a New Zealand tally of below 100 looked likely, and if Pakistan had caught even reasonably well this would have happened. However by the time the 20th over came round four catches had been grassed. Remarkably another three chances went begging in the course of the 20th over. In the end New Zealand had scored 110-6. If Pakistan had merely had to win to progress things would have looked excellent for them…

THE PAKISTAN REPLY

The calculations revealed that barring levelling the scores and then hitting a boundary Pakistan needed to chase down the target of 111 in 10.4 overs or less. The three basic scenarios, ignoring boundary finishes were:

1: Pakistan chase down the target in 10.4 overs or less: Pakistan go into the semi-finals, India and New Zealand take the next flight home.

2: Pakistan chase down the target in 10.5 or more overs: India progress to the semi-finals and it is home time for New Zealand and Pakistan

3: Pakistan fail to reach the target, presumably because they get bowled out: New Zealand progress and both subcontinental sides are homeward bound.

Pakistan were thus obliged to take an extremely aggressive approach while any sort of hope of the quick win remained. Such an approach means an increased chance of opposition wickets, and that is what eventuated. New Zealand did better catching wise than their opponents had, but even they were not flawless in the field. However, Pakistan were 28-5 after 5.3 overs, as their aggressive approach did not work out. The sixth wicket pair now settled in for a stand that gave India hope, if they could somehow keep it going, but amounted to Pakistan’s acknowledgement that their own challenge had ended. The second last ball of the tenth over saw the partnership broken when Nida Dar was deceived by a beauty from Kerr and Gaze made no mistake with the stumping. That was 52-6. Omaima Sohail gave Carson a return catch in the 11th over to make it 55-7. Syeda Aroob Shah was run out off the first ball of the 12th over, a fine return from Green to Kerr doing the job. Fatima Sana back on strike, and now her sides last remaining hope, was caught by Bates off the next ball to make it 56-9. Sadia Iqbal, the number two ranked WT20I bowler in the world, behind another left arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone, survived one ball, before she too was caught by Bates off Kerr, for a duck in her case. Pakistan were all out for 56, their lowest ever WT20I total (previously 60), though the nature of the challenge facing them provided mitigating circumstances. Bates’ final catch was her 400th in professional cricket. Incidentally if Bates manages to keep going until 2028 she could join a very small club of people who have competed in The Olympics in two different sports – at Beijing in 2008 a young Bates was part New Zealand’s basketball team, and cricket will feature at Los Angeles 2028.

PHOTOGRAPHS

This section was my main reason for wanting to put up another post today – my thanks to the New Zealand and Pakistan Women’s cricket teams for providing the material for the body of the post. I start with a video, taken on the bank of Bawsey Drain, King’s Lynn during my afternoon walk:

Now for the photos…

New Zealand Poised For A Second Big Win Of The Tournament

This post looks in the main at developments in today’s ODI Cricket World Cup match between The Netherlands and New Zealand. However just to tie up the loose ends of yesterday’s post, my unequivocal and unambiguous statement that due to the small size of the total they were chasing India were still favourites to win even after losing three very early wickets was borne out by the final stages of the match. Kohli and Rahul took India to the brink of victory before Kohli was caught for a fine 85. Hardik Pandya struck a six, which roused Rahul to new levels of aggression, and it was ultimately India’s batter-keeper who made the winning hit, a six over cover which took him to 97*. The margin was six wickets and 8.4 overs to spare, which gives India a healthy net run rate of 0.883 (this could be crucial later on, as if multiple teams finish the round robin stage on the same points tally net RR will be used as the tie-splitter. My reckoning based on the fact that four of ten teams qualify for the semi-final stage is that teams with a win-loss ratio of 6-3 or better will likely qualify without recourse to net RR and that it will be the teams with five wins and four defeats who get separated by net run rate. Thus my reckoning is that after yesterday Australia with their net RR having taking a big early hit need to win six of their remaining eight matches, while four more wins would probably see India qualify on net RR.

THE NETHERLANDS V NEW ZEALAND

I missed the early stages of this match due to an appointment with the hygienist at my dental practice. The Netherlands won the toss and foolishly went with their fears about dew making the ball difficult to grip and gave New Zealand the opportunity to make use of the best batting conditions of the match. For much of the New Zealand innings a 350+ total looked on, but a combination of tight Dutch bowling and a couple of quick wickets around the 40 over mark put that kind of total out of reach, and at one stage a total of under 300 seemed possible. Overs 48 and 49, which went for 17 and 12 respectively got New Zealand to 300. With one ball left in the innings New Zealand were on 309-7. Then Bas de Leede, who had bowled very well, and had figures of 1-51 had a horror finish that spoiled his fine spell: first he bowled a no-ball which was smashed for six, then the resultant free hit produced six more and the last ball of the innings had thus yielded 13 (12 for the two sixes, one for the no-ball). New Zealand had thus ended on 322-7.

The Netherlands have not made a good start to the reply. Currently they stand at 76-3 after 19 overs, meaning that required run rate is pushing eight an over. Unless something remarkable happens in the remaining 31 overs of this match New Zealand, who started this tournament by pummelling England in the opening fixture, will be extremely strongly placed, with two wins out of two and a very good net RR.

PHOTOGRAPHS

I have a bumper gallery to share with you…

The sun heading for the horizon last night as I walked along the Gaywood River Path
Red on black meets black on red.

Cricket World Cup Matches 2, 3 and 4

The 2023 Men’s ODI World Cup is well and truly underway. This post looks at the two completed matches that I have been able to follow, and the game currently in progress.

NETHERLANDS V PAKISTAN

The Netherlands had done well to qualify for the tournament with it being limited to ten teams, whereas Pakistan are among the leading contenders for the title. Adherents of the ‘closed shop’ mentality that led to the reduction of the number of sides in this edition of the world cup would doubtless have used a totally one sided game here to push their agenda harder. Fortunately for those who believe in growing the game although the final margin was comfortable there were times when it looked anything but comfortable for Pakistan – at one stage they were 38-3 before recovering, and the Netherlands were still in it even at the three-quarter way stage. This match saw an example of over-obsession with the notion that the Player of the Match must come from the winning side. This was a clear case for an exception to what is a decent general rule – Bas de Leede’s four wicket haul with the ball and 68 with the bat should have got him the award even though his side lost. In achieving this all round performance de Leede set a new record, because he had scored a century and taken five wickets against Scotland in his previous ODI – no one had ever previously had two successive 50+ scores and two successive four+ wicket hauls.

AFGHANISTAN V BANGLADESH

This was a great disappointment. Afghanistan started decently, reaching 112-2 at the high water mark of their innings. Even by then though metaphorical clouds were gathering – Afghanistan number four Hashmatullah Shahidi wasn’t middling the ball and wasn’t managing to rotate the strike. Frustration set in, and first he (18 off 38) and then Rahmanullah Gurbaz (47 off 62, having at one point been 45 off 54) perished playing poor shots. Several recent big Afghan scores have been built on the back of major innings from Gurbaz, and his dismissal, leaving the middle and lower order to attempt to get the side to a defensible total unaided, completely deflated Afghanistan. They never looked like reaching a defensible total, and they lost wickets with great regularity. In the end, with the last three wickets crashing at the same score Afghanistan were all out for paltry 156. In a 50 over a side game that kind of total should never be defended, and a fairly experienced Bangladesh line up handled the menial task of knocking these runs off with utter professionalism, getting home with over 15 overs to spare. The highlight was an aggressive half century from Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who had earlier claimed three wickets with his off spin.

SOUTH AFRICA V SRI LANKA

A blistering batting performance from South Africa saw them record the highest team total in world cup history – 428-5 from their 50 overs. Quinton de Kock and Rassie van der Dussen scored fine centuries to get South Africa going, and then Aiden Markram became the third centurion of the innings, getting there in the fewest balls in world cup history – a mere 49. There were also smaller explosive contributions from Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller, who as regular participants in T20 franchise leagues around the world relished being in in the closing overs of the innings with big runs already on the board. Sri Lanka’s reply threatened briefly, with Kusal Mendis scoring 76 off 42 balls, but they have lost momentum since his dismissal, and a failure for Charith Asalanka means that after 17 overs they are 123-4, needing 306 from 33 overs at 9.27 per over. SA scored quicker than this in the latter stages of their innings, but they were 210-1 after 30 overs, and it is easier to really pound the accelerator pedal when you are facing what is basically a T20 innings (yes, one wicket down already and no power play overs, but as against that two set batters at the crease together and plenty of firepower to come). Sri Lanka, four down already, will need to try to force the pace while knowing that if it goes wrong they could fall in a heap and lose by a truly massive margin (significant because net run rate could come into play at the end of the group stage, and a massive loss early in the tournament is hard to recover from in NRR terms).

PHOTOGRAPHS

My usual sign off…