The 13th edition of the Cricket World Cup kicked off on 6 October 2023 with a match between the defending champion England and New Zealand. The Eng vs NZ match was played at Narendra Modi Stadium. It is the largest cricket stadium in the world. England was ready to dominate again at the World Cup stage, and New Zealand was all set to take revenge for the 2019 World Cup final and start their campaign with a victory.
Let’s delve into the details of the inaugural match of the 2023 World Cup.
Scorecard
The scorecard of the Eng vs NZ World Cup 2023 match is as follows:
1st Innings
| BATTERS | Runs | Balls | Strike Rate | 4s | 6s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonny Bairstow | 33 | 35 | 94.28 | 4 | 1 |
| Dawid Malan | 14 | 24 | 58.33 | 2 | 0 |
| Joe Root | 77 | 86 | 89.53 | 4 | 1 |
| Harry Brook | 25 | 16 | 156.25 | 4 | 1 |
| Moeen Ali | 11 | 17 | 64.7 | 1 | 0 |
| Jos Buttler (c)† | 43 | 42 | 102.38 | 2 | 2 |
| Liam Livingstone | 20 | 22 | 90.9 | 3 | 0 |
| Sam Curran | 14 | 19 | 73.68 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Woakes | 11 | 12 | 91.66 | 1 | 0 |
| Adil Rashid | 15 | 13 | 115.38 | 0 | 1 |
| Mark Wood | 13 | 14 | 92.85 | 0 | 0 |
| Extras | 6 | ||||
| TOTAL | 282/9 | ||||
| BOWLERS | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Economy Rate | Wickets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trent Boult | 10 | 1 | 48 | 4.8 | 1 |
| Matt Henry | 10 | 1 | 48 | 4.8 | 3 |
| Mitchell Santner | 10 | 0 | 37 | 3.7 | 2 |
| James Neesham | 7 | 0 | 56 | 8 | 0 |
| Rachin Ravindra | 10 | 0 | 76 | 7.6 | 1 |
| Glenn Phillips | 3 | 0 | 17 | 5.66 | 2 |
2nd Innings
| BATTERS | Runs | Balls | Strike Rate | 4s | 6s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Devon Conway | 152 | 121 | 125.61 | 19 | 3 |
| Will Young | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rachin Ravindra | 123 | 96 | 128.12 | 11 | 5 |
| Extras | 8 | ||||
| TOTAL | 283/1 | ||||
| BOWLERS | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Economy Rate | Wickets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Woakes | 6 | 0 | 45 | 7.5 | 0 |
| Sam Curran | 6 | 2 | 47 | 7.83 | 1 |
| Mark Wood | 5 | 0 | 55 | 11 | 0 |
| Moeen Ali | 9.2 | 0 | 60 | 6.42 | 0 |
| Adil Rashid | 7 | 0 | 47 | 6.71 | 0 |
| Liam Livingstone | 3 | 0 | 24 | 8 | 0 |
Toss, and Teams
Kane Williamson was not playing due to a knee injury, so Tom Latham led the Black Caps. He won the toss and asked England to bat first.
Playing XI
The playing 11 of both teams is as follows:
-
England’s XI
1. Jonny Bairstow
2. Dawid Malan
3. Joe Root
4. Harry Brook
5. Jos Buttler (capt/wk)
6. Liam Livingstone
7. Moeen Ali
8. Sam Curran
9. Chris Woakes
10. Adil Rashid
11. Mark Wood
-
New Zealand’s XI
1. Devon Conway
2. Will Young
3. Rachin Ravindra
4. Daryl Mitchell
5. Tom Latham (capt/wk)
6. Glenn Phillips
7. Mark Chapman
8. James Neesham
9. Mitchell Santner
10. Matt Henry
11. Trent Boult
Eng vs NZ World Cup 2023 Match Details
England’s Innings
England batted first as they were asked to bat by New Zealand. Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan came to open the innings, and Trent Boult bowled the 1st over of the match. Bairstow treated Boult aggressively and got off to a good start with a 6 on the 2nd ball of the over. His 1st over went for 12 runs, including a 6 and a 4.
Matt Henry introduced himself with pace and bounce on 1st ball to Malan. The ball hit the pads, and New Zealand appealed, but the umpire showed no interest. They went for the review, and the ball was missing the stumps. He bowled a maiden 1st over of his spell.
However, Bairstow was in an aggressive mood and smashed 2 fours to Henry in the 6th over. Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan gave England a brisk start, but Malan fell in the 8th over when Henry trapped him. By the end of the 1st powerplay, England were 51/1.
Joe Root and Bairstow began to accelerate, but Bairstow’s knock was cut short by Mitchell Santner. He scored 33 runs in 35 balls he played. The 17th over by Rachin Ravindra was full of actions and excitement.
Brook treated him brutally as he hammered him for 2 consecutive fours and a 6 over mid-wicket. But it was Ravindra who stood tall and got his wicket off the final delivery of the over. He attempted another big hit and was caught at deep mid-wicket. England were 112/3 after 20 overs.
Moeen Ali was sent to tackle spinners, but Glenn Phillips entrapped him. Phillips rattled his stumps with a quick skidding delivery. Root, on the other hand, was in a great touch, scoring boundaries and rotating strike continuously. He completed his 37th ODI fifty off 57 balls.
Jos Buttler also took charge and smoked 2 sixes to James Neesham. Henry was called for his 2nd spell, and he did his job very well. He dismissed Buttler with a back-of-length delivery when he was batting at 43 runs. Livingstone, known for his power hitting, smashed 2 fours in the 37th over of Ravindra. He lost his wicket when England was at 221 in the 39th over.
New Zealand spinners did an excellent job for their team in the Eng vs NZ match. Phillips scalped Root’s stumps when he attempted to play a reverse sweep. He played a brilliant innings of 77 runs, including 4 fours and a 6. Woakes scored 11 runs, and Sam Curran added 14 runs in the team’s total.
An unbeaten stand of 30 runs between Adil Rashid and Mark Wood ensured the team total of 282 at the end of 50 overs. Root was the standout batter for England with his 77 runs. Matt Henry took 3 wickets in his 10 overs, conceding 48 runs.
New Zealand Innings
Devon Conway started the innings by hitting 2 fours in the 1st over to Chris Woakes. In the next over, Sam Curran got Will Young on his 1st ball. He was caught behind for a golden duck. Rachin Ravindra joined Conway at the crease. Both batters were playing their 1st ODI World Cup game.
Ravindra smashed 2 consecutive fours to Woakes in the 3rd over and 2 fours in the 5th over as well. Curran had a flawless start, taking a wicket without conceding any runs in his first two overs. Woakes struggled with the new ball by consistently delivering it too full.
Mark Wood’s introduction provided England with the extra pace that had been missing in the initial overs. Right away, he hit a speed of 95mph in his first over. However, when Conway faced Wood’s first delivery, he elegantly flicked it off his pads for a boundary.
Then, when Wood opted for a short-pitched delivery against Ravindra, it resulted in a 6. Later, when Wood altered his line to aim outside the off stump, Ravindra unleashed another powerful shot for 4 runs.
The Kiwis stood tall in the first powerplay as they posted 81 runs in 10 overs. In the very next over, Conway again hit a boundary and a massive 6 to Wood. New Zealand batters continued to score boundaries in every over, and English bowlers were not getting any chance to get a breakthrough.
Rachin Ravindra completed his 50 in the 12th over with a massive 6 over mid-wicket. Conway also got his 50 with a boundary in the next over. By the end of 20 overs, the Black Caps had scored 154/1.
Both batters batted brilliantly and played flawless innings. Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra hit sublime centuries on their World Cup debut and added 273 runs for the second wicket.
English spinners couldn’t help through their bowling like Santner did for New Zealand earlier. Moeen, Adil Rashid, and Liam Livingstone conceded combined figures of 0-131 from 19.2 overs.
The Kiwi dominance prevailed as it was the fastest chase of a 250-plus target in World Cup history. Conway’s quality in this format has been remarkable, as he notched up his 4th century of the year.
As for Ravindra, this marked his very 1st international century. New Zealand sealed the victory in the 37th over with 9 wickets in hand. Rachin Ravindra was named Player of the Match in the Eng vs NZ World Cup game.
Conclusion
England and New Zealand locked horns in the opening match of the 2023 ODI World Cup. England batted 1st and posted 282 runs on the scorecard. Root was the top scorer with 77 runs. Matt Henry took 3 wickets, and Santner and Phillips got 2 each. While Boult and Ravindra claimed 1 wicket each in the Eng vs NZ match.
In the second innings, England’s bowlers struggled against New Zealand’s formidable batters. Devon Conway smashed an unbeaten 152 runs in 121 balls. Rachin Ravindra also hammered a top knock of 123 runs. Curran was the only bowler to pick a wicket. New Zealand begin their 2023 World Cup campaign with a massive victory against the defending champion.
