England are set to begin their eleventh bilateral ODI series in New Zealand this Sunday, with the first of five matches to be played at Hamilton’s Seddon Park. From 38 ODIs against New Zealand in New Zealand, which includes two World Cup games (in 1992 and 2015), England have won 15 and lost 19, in addition to two tied contests. Here is a look back at five of the most exciting ODI encounters in which England faced off against the hosts in their own backyard.
Third ODI, Auckland, 1990-91
The teams arrived at Eden Park with the three-match series locked at 1-1. New Zealand had pinched a low-scorer at Wellington by nine runs to stay alive in the series, and repeated the feat with an even narrower win three days later. The hosts lost captain Martin Crowe early after being inserted, but Andrew Jones held the top order together with a solid 64. However, the innings was moving at a sluggish pace – it took New Zealand more than 30 overs to reach the 100-run mark.
The shot in the arm came from the sixth-wicket pair of Chris Harris (39) and Ian Smith, who combined for 74 runs in 55 balls. Smith remained unbeaten on a quickfire 51 off just 30 balls, taking the total to a fighting 224/7. In reply, England’s openers Graham Gooch (47) and Michael Atherton put on 83, even as the medium pace of Gavin Larsen and Harris (2/36) kept the run flow in control.
Allan Lamb (42) and Robin Smith tried to up the ante, bringing down the target to a gettable 55 from the last ten overs, with seven wickets in hand. Lamb succumbed to Chris Cairns (4/55) in the 41st over though, and this put England under pressure. The rising required rate, coupled with the steady tumble of wickets – the last seven fell for 46 – culminated in England being bowled out for 217 in 49.5 overs. Harris was named the man of the match for his all-round display.
Third ODI, Napier, 1996-97
With England having won the first two ODIs, New Zealand were in a do-or-die situation at McLean Park. Bryan Young’s assured 52 gave the hosts a good platform at the top – he put on 50 with Nathan Astle and 53 with captain Lee Germon for the first and second wickets respectively. England soon gained the upper hand by repeatedly denting the middle order, before Craig White collected 4/37 at the death to ensure that New Zealand were restricted to 237.
England began at a good clip with a 67-run opening stand between Nick Knight and captain Michael Atherton. Debutant seamer Geoff Allott caught Knight off his own bowling, a dismissal that triggered the loss of five wickets for 60 runs. It was Chris Harris, later adjudged man of the match, who played a major role in stymieing the visitors’ intentions by returning figures of 3/20 from his miserly spell of ten overs of slow-medium pace.
Graham Thorpe, batting at number four, kept England in the hunt with a 61-ball 51, while White and Dominic Cork built on his effort, sharing in a seventh-wicket stand of 58. It all boiled down to the last over, to be bowled by Allott, with England at 230/6. White was run out, but new man Robert Croft hit a four to bring down the equation to two from two. Allott bowled Croft off the fifth delivery, before Darren Gough and Cork scrambled for a bye to force a nail-biting tie.
Fourth ODI, Auckland, 1996-97
After having narrowly denied England the series win at Napier, New Zealand prevailed in a gripping contest that was dominated by the bowlers. Play was not possible on the scheduled day due to rain, which continued into the reserve day as well, resulting in a 43-overs-a-side game. Put in to bat on a damp pitch, New Zealand subsided to 153 all out in the 40th over despite a good start from Bryan Young and Nathan Astle (51), who added 53 for the opening wicket.
Astle and Stephen Fleming put on a further 59 for the third wicket to take the score to 113/2. However, following Astle’s dismissal, New Zealand lost eight for 40 due to a mix of poor shot selection, addled running and accurate bowling.
England endured a blow just two balls into their chase when Nick Knight had his finger fractured by a ball from Heath Davis, forcing him to leave the field. The Kiwi pacers cashed in on this advantage, reducing England to 41/4.
Alec Stewart waged a lone battle, until Astle bowled him for 42 to end a fifth-wicket stand of 50 between him and White. The score crashed from 91/4 to 133/9 in the 40th over, at which point Knight returned with the hope of taking his team to victory. It was not to be, however, as Gavin Larsen, who took 3/20, accounted for last man Chris Silverwood to seal New Zealand’s nine-run win with nine balls remaining. Astle and Larsen shared the man of the match honour.
Fourth ODI, Napier, 2007-08
Remarkably, the second tied ODI between the two teams was also played out at McLean Park. New Zealand, who was leading the five-match series 2-1, decided to field first. Halfway through the England innings, Kiwi skipper Daniel Vettori might have been ruing the decision as openers Alastair Cook (69) and Phil Mustard (83) ran up a partnership of 158 at nearly a run a ball, before the medium pace of Jesse Ryder removed both batsmen in successive balls.
Ian Bell (43) and Kevin Pietersen (50) maintained the tempo, sharing 74 for the third wicket. The last ten overs were even more bountiful for England, as they amassed 101 to post an imposing 340/6. Captain Paul Collingwood slammed six sixes in his 30-ball 54*. The Black Caps’ openers, Ryder and Brendon McCullum (58), were up to the task, laying the base with a 70-run stand. McCullum & Jamie How added 91 in 87 balls for the second wicket.
How accelerated even further in the company of Ross Taylor (48), and the duo clinically built a third-wicket stand of 92 in 13 overs. Taylor’s dismissal did not bother How, who marched on to his maiden ODI hundred off 86 balls. At 296/3 after 43 overs, as the game seemed New Zealand’s to lose, England fought back, scalping three for 14 in the next two overs. Even then, New Zealand needed seven from the last over, with four wickets left and How still in the middle.
Collingwood gambled by turning to the medium pace of Luke Wright, who was yet to bowl in the match, for the final over. Wright allowed only five runs from the first four balls, whittling the target down to two from two. The fifth ball was a full toss, which Vettori hit to James Anderson at mid-off, who ran How out at the bowler’s end for a brilliant 139 in 116 balls. Vettori then sneaked in a last-gasp single off the last ball to make sure that New Zealand averted defeat.
First ODI, Hamilton, 2012-13
New Zealand secured a dramatic three-wicket win in the series opener. After being put in to bat, England rode on fifties from Ian Bell (64), Jonathan Trott (68) and Joe Root (56), and looked primed for a final flourish at 184/2 in the 39th over. But Kyle Mills removed the settled Trott, and the last eight wickets fell for only 74, the innings terminating at 258 in the 50th over. Pacers Mitchell McClenaghan (4/56) and James Franklin (3/38) were the hosts’ chief wicket-takers.
The Black Caps lost both openers early – BJ Watling was castled by James Anderson in the first over and Martin Guptill retired hurt due to a hamstring strain in the sixth. Kane Williamson brought the innings back on track with 74. When he was fourth out with the score at 142, New Zealand needed 117 more from 96 balls. Swashbuckling wicketkeeper-captain Brendon McCullum strode in and proceeded to play a calculated, game-changing knock.
England kept striking at the other end, and when the seventh wicket fell, the equation for New Zealand was 41 from 25 balls. The spirited Guptill came out to join his captain, and smote 24 in just ten balls to bring his side closer to victory. While McCullum remained unbeaten on 69 from 61 balls, Guptill, who could not take any further part in the series, had the satisfaction of hitting the winning run with seven balls to spare. England came back to win the three-match series 2-1.
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