Sat 10 Apr 2021 03.24 BST
First published on Sa 10 Apr 2021 02:36 BST
3.24 a.m. BST03: 24
That’s one of the remarkable things about this winning streak. In cricket, you don’t just have to beat the teams you are playing against. You must be lucky enough not to get any results during your dominance period.
3.23 a.m. BST03: 23
It’s starting to sound like we’re about to start. But here’s an interesting consideration. If we get part of a game today and it’s canceled, Australia’s winning streak will end with 23 ODIs. Sure, the sports pages can lead to technical aspects like « 24 games unbeaten », but as far as the record books with a pure winning streak, it would be the match has not officially started. If it were canceled now, there would be no game entry in the record books or in the player profiles. But if they keep the shot then it is officially a match, which means that Australia must win this match in the time available to keep the record alive.
3.07 a.m. BST03: 07
In New Zealand, of course, the women’s world championship for the 50-over format should take place this year. It was postponed to February and March next year. But that’s not that far away now, so every ODI game and series has a special meaning right now as the teams figure out how to approach this tournament.
2.55 a.m. BST02: 55
I just saw a clip from the second match in which Leigh Kasperek took a great dive to save a few runs from her own bowling and was more or less planted in the rough grass on the next pitch. The texture was not suitable for sliding. Her teammate Katey Martin behind the stumps first burst out laughing and then asked if she was okay. Then she said very gently, loud enough for the blunt microphone to pick up: « Beached as, bro. »
2.48 a.m. BST02: 48
What did I just say about third game rain? Today’s game could suffer the same fate. The litter at Mount Maunganui was delayed due to rain. The ceilings are still on, there are a few ground crews wandering around the surface and the referees are watching. There is also more rain for later in the day. So the question will be whether we can actually get along long enough to get the appearance of a match.
2.35 a.m. BST02: 35
Game 3, and it’s a familiar situation for New Zealand in the Rose Bowl ODI series: outclassed, trophy gone, nothing to play but pride. The Australians won this thing every time back in 1999. A proud record for one side and a sad record for the other, a team that was largely competitive at the time, a team that won the 50 Over World Championship in 2000 but it can’t consistently do that against the Aussies put together.
In the first game in this series, New Zealand was unable to set a test target for the pursuit. In the second match they couldn’t hunt a bigger one themselves. There have been some excellent bowling and fielding moments for the Kiwis, but they didn’t do much with the bat. Two of her three older weapons are missing. Sophie Devine tired and Suzie Bates is still recovering from a long-term shoulder injury. which doesn’t help, although her presence in many previous Rose Bowls competitions has not been decisive.
New Zealand did well during the T20 series before those one-days, and brought Australia to a decision maker who was rainy. Now, very late in the season, is a chance to end on a positive note. The Australians have now won 23 games in a row and want it to stay that way.
Ref: https://www.theguardian.com
