Dynasty Continues: Australian Men win 12th World Cup title
New Zealand threw everything they at them and ran the game deep, but the Australians remained calm under pressure, executing when it counted, and secured an unprecedented 12th World title to continue their domination of the sport.
Summary
Cup Final:
Australia 83 (Winkler/M Floros 34, Watson 2/-2, Latham 2/2) defeated New Zealand 46 (Barry/Hyndman 32, Diener 3/-5, Ryan 2/4) by 37 runs
United Arab Emirates 124 defeated England 61 by 63 runs
Player of the Final: Rhys Dearness, Australia
Player of the Tournament: Suraj Reddy, India
They were pushed to their very limit by a gallant New Zealand side, but in the end, as they always do, Australia executed in the big moments when it counted, defeating the Kiwis by 37 runs to record a 37-run win and their 12th Indoor Cricket World Cup title, continue their staggering run as the only country in the tournament’s history to win the title.
The Australians went into the match unchanged from the side that humbled the Kiwis in the Major Semi-Final, whilst New Zealand were forced to make one change, with Mitchell Gardner coming for brother Braden, who was ruled out with an elbow injury.
After Todd Watson won the toss and sent Australia in to bat, the New Zealand side showed they came ready to play, with the captain himself effecting the run out of Tim Floros off the second ball of the match. Floros had a tough time with the bat, first bowled by Michael Barry, then Matthew Latham in the fourth over, and when Diener was also run out, New Zealand has restricted Australia’s solid opening pair to just nine runs.
A recovery came from Kieran Perkins and Rhys Dearness, no stranger to World Cup finals, when they put behind an early dismissal to post 29 runs and put Australia back on track. With 38 after eight overs, the next two put New Zealand into an excellent position, with Latham running out Justin Perkins off Watson’s bowling, before Ryan Jackson knocked over Luke Ryan, and when the skipper had Ryan run out in the same over, the Australians were reeling at 32 after 10.
The match was in the balance at this point, but slowly turned as Perkins and Ryan put together 17 runs in their last two overs to bring the total to 49 after 12. Captain Matthew Floros and Brock Winkler then finished the innings with precision, though they were let off with a couple of missed chances by New Zealand, scoring a valuable 34 to take Australia to their 80+ score against their Trans-Tasman rivals this tournament.
Australia came out aggressively in defence of 83, with sharp keeping by Kieran Perkins having Dion Joll stumped second ball of the innings, before Ryan struck again, this time bowling Joll out. After Latham gave a return catch to Dearness, the New Zealand openers were in trouble, but 11 runs off Justin Perkins’ over brought the total to 12 after four overs.
Stacy and Hyndman produced a clinic of batting thereafter, hitting 32 runs, massive in the context of the game, without losing a wicket. It included a finish off 11 runs off the Australian skipper as New Zealand went past halfway to Australia’s total at the eight over mark.
With 40 needed off 48 at five runs an over, Watson and Micah Conroy needed to continue the consolidation to keep their final pair in the game. Australia came prepared for the New Zealand skipper and Micah Conroy, with a Justin Perkins turn and throw as wicket-keeper off brother Kieran’s bowling, on the very first ball of the pair, brought Australia back into the contest. And with 54 on the board after 11 overs, Perkins striking twice in three balls put a serious dent in the Kiwis’ hopes, bringing the score back down to 48.
Jackson and Gardner were left with the improbable task of scoring 36 off the last four overs, and Diener’s triple-strike in the 13th all but sealed the victory.
It brought the curtain down on another dominant tournament for the reigning champions, undefeated over 11 matches this tournament and an incredible 37 in total. Whilst New Zealand pushed them hard in the final, it remains to be seen who has what it takes, to bringing down this ever growing dynasty.
Leading Contributors (minimum of six matches):
Most wickets: Justin Perkins (AUS) - 25 wickets in nine matches at 2.78 wickets per match.
Best Economy: Dhanush Bhaskar (IND) - -9.00 runs conceded in six matches at -0.75 per over.
Most runs: Shewon Fonseka (SRL) - 181 runs from 11 matches at 16.45 runs per match, Strike Rate of 119.
Best contribution (total): Brock Winkler (AUS) - 122 contribution from eight matches.
Best contribution (average): Brock Winkler (AUS) -15.30 per match from eight matches.
Image: U-Pro Indoor Cricket
