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WC 2015

Scorecard - 31st Match, Pool A, New Zealand vs Afghanistan at McLean Park, Napier, New Zealand (07 Mar 2015)

Afghanistan

186/10 (47.4) RR:3.9

New Zealand won by 6 wkts

MOM: Daniel Vettori
New Zealand

188/4 (36.1) RR:5.2

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47.3 - Corey Anderson to Hamid, FOUR, these runs will now be hurting New Zealand. Shortens the length around off, Hassan backs away and steers it to third man, the fielder was inside the circle and it was cleverly played

46.3 - Milne to Hamid, FOUR, cracking shot! These are some useful runs for Afghanistan. Short and width on offer, Hassan transfers his weight onto the back foot and cuts it behind point. No chance for third man to stop that

46.0 - Corey Anderson to Hamid, FOUR, take that, Anderson! Full and in the slot, Hassan clears his front leg and hammers it over the bowler's head. That is more like the tailender's shot

45.5 - Corey Anderson to Hamid, FOUR, streaky! Dug in midway down the track, Hassan looks to arch back and sway out of the way, but held his bat up like a telescope, the ball takes the edge and flies over the keeper. He couldn't believe that he connected and has a wry smile on his face

44.2 - Boult to Shenwari, FOUR, Shenwari brings up his fifty, 10th in ODIs and 2nd in the World Cup. The back of the hand slower ball, Shenwari lofts it over extra cover, Baz gives chase, dives and hauls it in, but the ball still rolls back to the rope

38.0 - Elliott to Najibullah, FOUR, back of a length delivery outside off, Najibullah goes hard at it, gets an outside edge and the ball runs away to the third man fence

37.2 - Elliott to Najibullah, FOUR, 2nd ODI fifty for Najibullah, it was short and wide outside off, Najibullah cuts it past a diving backward point and the ball runs away to the fence

36.4 - Milne to Najibullah, FOUR, back of a length delivery angling away outside off, Najibullah stays back and lofts it over mid-off, the ball runs away to the fence, he didn't middle it but the ball had enough to reach the fence

32.1 - Corey Anderson to Najibullah, FOUR, full delivery outside off, Najibullah goes for the drive off the front foot, but gets a thick outside edge that runs away to the third man fence, the fielder at third man was a little square and had no chance of cutting that off

28.1 - Corey Anderson to Shenwari, FOUR, fuller and outside off, Shenwari presses forward and drives, didn't time it as well as he would have liked, but the ball had enough to beat Guptill's chase and dive

24.3 - Southee to Shenwari, FOUR, fabulous shot! It was fuller and just outside off, Shenwari comes forward and drives it wide of mid-off, the timing was superb as it beats McCullum's chase

23.4 - Vettori to Najibullah, FOUR, Najibullah not afraid to take on the bowlers. He shimmies down the track and wanted to go over mid-off, ends up slicing it over extra cover. It came off the outside half of the bat

22.1 - Milne to Najibullah, FOUR, hammered! Banged in midway down the pitch, Najibullah pulls it off the front foot, he hits it in front of square and not a muscle moved on the ground. It was raw power from Najibullah

21.4 - Vettori to Shenwari, FOUR, Vettori errs in line and Shenwari is quick to dispatch it. On middle and leg, Shenwari kneels down and hammers the sweep behind square, the fielder was square and had no chance of stopping that

21.0 - Milne to Najibullah, FOUR, lovely shot! Najibullah is not afraid to play his shots. It was overpitched outside off, he doesn't get fully forward and drills the drive through extra cover, Vettori gives chase and comes second

20.3 - Milne to Najibullah, FOUR, take that says Najibullah, pitched up outside off, he gets a good stride forward and creams the drive through the vacant cover region. He rolled his wrists to keep it along the ground and to get the placement right

12.5 - Boult to Nawroz, FOUR, aggression from Mangal as he comes charging down the track to this back of a length delivery, he cuts it up and over cover and the ball runs away to the sweeper cover fence

9.4 - Southee to Nawroz, FOUR, angling in on the pads, Mangal clips it past square leg and the short side boundaries do the rest

8.3 - Boult to Shenwari, FOUR, Shenwari gets off the mark with a boundary, it was full and outside off, Shenwari opens the face of the bat and drives, gets it past backward point and the ball runs away to the fence

6.1 - Boult to Nawroz, FOUR, back of a length delivery outside off, Mangal opens the face of the bat and steers it past gully and backward point, both of them dived, but the ball splits them perfectly and runs away to the fence

5.5 - Southee to Stanikzai, FOUR, banged in short once again, Stanikzai rocks back, controls the pull as he rolls his wrists on it, Elliott from short mid-wicket gives chase, but the ball beats his dive near the boundary and crashes into the deep square leg fence

5.1 - Southee to Stanikzai, FOUR, banged in short and at the batsman, Stanikzai goes for the pull, gets a top-edge that flies over the slip cordon, he was not in control there but luckily for him, the ball went over the slips and runs away to the third man fence

0.2 - Southee to Ahmadi, leg byes, FOUR, angling down leg, Ahmadi fails to clip it fine, the ball rolls away towards the fine leg fence off the pad, Ronchi dived to his left, but couldn't stop the ball

43.1 - Corey Anderson to Shenwari, SIX, monster hit! Targets the short side boundary and clears it comfortably. Length delivery around off, Shenwari shuffles across, gets his front leg out of the way and heaves it over cow corner for a maximum. That went 30 rows back

35.1 - Southee to Najibullah, SIX, first ball from Southee in the batting powerplay and it has been smacked over the long-on fence, it was touch fuller and outside off, Zadran just launches it over the long-on fence, someone in the crowd tried to take the one-handed catch, but fails to take it

24.1 - Southee to Najibullah, SIX, monster! It is out of the park. Hit one of the pillars on the roof. Length delivery right in the arc, Najibullah swings hard and sends it sailing over deep mid-wicket for a maximum. Southee has a wry smile on his face

47.4 - Corey Anderson to Hamid, out Caught by Milne!! That's a stunner from Milne. The fun ends for Hassan. Gives the charge once again, Anderson drops it short, Hassan flat-bats it to wide long-on, Milne runs forward, dives full length and scoops it inches from the ground. That was a difficult take and he made it look ridiculously easy. Hamid c Milne b Corey Anderson 16(21) [4s-4]

45.2 - Corey Anderson to Shenwari, out Caught by Ross Taylor!! A fine innings comes to an end. Anderson has the last laugh. It was banged in halfway down the wicket, Shenwari is hurried on the pull, top-edges it to backward square, where the birthday boy Taylor takes it easily. Shenwari c Ross Taylor b Corey Anderson 54(110) [4s-5 6s-1]

41.1 - Boult to Dawlat Zadran, out Caught by Ronchi!! That was very easy! This is the reason why Shenwari wanted to keep most of the strike. Boult comes round the wicket, keeps it full and just outside off, Dawlat has a wild swing at it, gets a feather through to Ronchi. An unneccessary shot from the fast bowler. Dawlat Zadran c Ronchi b Boult 1(5)

38.3 - Milne to Najibullah, out Caught by Vettori!! Najibullah perishes after a good fifty. It was short and slightly wide outside off, Najibullah backs away and throws his bat at it, the ball flies off his bat towards Vettori at third man, who moves to his left and swallows it easily. End of a good partnership as well, the second highest partnership for Afghanistan for any wicket in World Cup. Najibullah c Vettori b Milne 56(56) [4s-8 6s-2]

19.5 - Vettori to Zazai, out Lbw!! On a hat-trick! Vettori went up for the lbw appeal and umpire Cloete obliged. It was the arm--ball that slides on after pitching, Zazai had no clue about that, goes back and misses the defence, is trapped in front of middle and leg. The ball would have crashed into leg-stump. Zazai lbw b Vettori 0(1)

19.4 - Vettori to Nabi, out Caught by Ross Taylor!! Vettori strikes again! He has picked up his third of the innings. This is top class left-arm spin bowling. Flighted delivery, that straightens a touch, Nabi pushes at it away from the body, the outside edge goes to Taylor at slip, he managed to hang onto it as it went right at his stomach. Nabi c Ross Taylor b Vettori 6(15)

15.1 - Vettori to Nawroz, out Bowled!! 300th ODI wicket for Vettori! First Kiwi to get to the landmark and only the 5th spinner in the world. He is congratulated by his team-mates on achieving the milestone. It was an arm-ball that pitches and drifts in, Mangal stays leg-side of the ball and looks to force it through the off-side, the ball hurried onto him and kisses the off-pole. He looked surprised, but has to make the long walk back to the pavilion. Nawroz b Vettori 27(46) [4s-3]

8.2 - Boult to Stanikzai, out Caught by Guptill!! Poor delivery from Boult, but he wouldn't mind it one bit. It was a short delivery well wide outside off, Stanikzai goes for the cut, but doesn't keep it down. He ends up giving a simple catch to backward point, where Guptill won't drop those even in his sleep. Three wickets down already and we are just in the 9th over. Stanikzai c Guptill b Boult 9(18) [4s-2]

2.1 - Vettori to Usman Ghani, out Bowled!! What a bowling change from McCullum, surely a genius! Ghani goes for a duck. It was the slider on off, Ghani was pushing at it off the front foot, the ball sneaks through the gap between bat-pad, crashes into the stumps, the off stump gets uprooted. Vettori is delighted and so are the other Kiwi players. Suprising bowling change, but it has done the job. Usman Ghani b Vettori 0(3)

1.3 - Boult to Ahmadi, out Lbw!! Early first wicket for the Black Caps. It was a length delivery on middle stump line, it shapes back in just a touch to beat Ahmad's bat, who was trying to clip it through the on-side. He misses and the ball sneaks through, He was hit high on the pad, but the onfield decision was out and it stays that way. Ahmadi lbw b Boult 1(7)

24.2 - Southee to Najibullah, 1 run, dropped! Can you believe it? It is Martin Guptill, who puts it down. Change up from Southee, rolls his finger on top of the ball, Najibullah goes for the hoick, miscues it completely towards deep square leg, Guptill ran forward and got both hands, but couldn't latch onto it. It stayed in the air for a long time

12.4 - Boult to Nawroz, 2 runs, dropped! Taylor is the culprit here, it was a length delivery outside off, Mangal pokes at it away from his body, he gets an edge towards Taylor at first slip, the ball was dying down on him, Taylor leans forward and tries to pouch it, but can't take it, the ball rolls away towards the third man region and the batsmen take two

28.5 - Corey Anderson to Shenwari, 1 run, run-out chance missed! Guptill almost made amends to the drop catch. Shenwari drives the full delivery towards short cover, Guptill dives to his left and makes a fine save, he then shies at the striker's end, where Shenwari had left the crease thinking the ball had gone past Guptill, he dived back in, but was well short. There was no one backing up and they steal the extra run

9.5 - Southee to Nawroz, 1 run, fullish delivery outside off with a hint of inswing, Mangal drives it towards mid-off and sets off, McCullum picks the ball up quickly running forward and fires the throw at the non-striker's end, had he hit, Mangal would have been out

36.1 - Nabi to Corey Anderson, FOUR, New Zealand win by 6 wickets. Anderson completes the formalities, tossed up delivery, he kneels down fetches it from outside off and sweeps it in front of square, the ball hurries through to the fence

35.5 - Dawlat Zadran to Ross Taylor, FOUR, New Zealand are one hit away now. Dawlat drifts onto the pads, Taylor stays inside the line and tickles it fine, the fielder was inside the ring and it was easy pickings

32.2 - Nabi to Elliott, FOUR, nice execution of the sweep shot, wrong line from Nabi, on leg-stump and turning away further, Elliott kneels down and sweeps it behind square, no one in the deep to stop that

28.1 - Dawlat Zadran to Ross Taylor, FOUR, classy shot! That should make him feel good. It was not a half volley, just full and around off, Taylor presses forward and caresses the drive through the packed off-side field, no one at sweeper to stop the four

26.2 - Dawlat Zadran to Guptill, FOUR, gorgeous shot! Guptill held his pose for the cameras after playing that. Fuller and on off, Guptill moves slightly to the leg-side, lofts it handsomely over the bowler's head, couple of bounces and into the fence

24.2 - Dawlat Zadran to Guptill, FOUR, typical Guptill shot! It was fuller on off and middle, Guptill keeps his head down and plays the pick up shot over mid-on, he didn't middle it and the ball rolls away to the fence

19.1 - Hamid to Guptill, FOUR, not in control of the shot, but Guptill will pick up four more. It was very similar to the way Williamson got out. Short and on off, Guptill goes back and pulls it just over mid-wicket, he timed it well as the ball raced to the fence

16.1 - Shenwari to Williamson, FOUR, great shot! Superb use of the feet. Williamson dances down the turf for the flighted delivery, gets to the pitch and picks it up over mid-wicket, couple of bounces and into the fence

15.3 - Dawlat Zadran to Williamson, FOUR, nice shot! It was short on middle and leg, Williamson swivels around in the crease and pulls it behind square, the fine leg fielder runs across, dives and fails to prevent the boundary

10.2 - Shapoor to Williamson, FOUR, back-to-back boundaries for Williamson, he is all about class, it was fuller and well wide outside off, Williamson reaches to the pitch of the ball and drives it beautifully through the covers, there was a cover and extra cover in place, but Williamson pierced them beautifully

10.1 - Shapoor to Williamson, FOUR, short and slightly wide outside off, Williamson waits for the ball and cuts it magnificently past backward point, the ball races across the turf and crashes into the fence

10.0 - Hamid to Guptill, FOUR, Guptill is getting a move on here, now he goes downtown for a boundary, it was touch fuller and outside off, Guptill leans forward and lofts it over mid-off, who was inside the circle and the ball runs away to the fence

9.5 - Hamid to Guptill, FOUR, short delivery at the batsman, Guptill rocks back and pulls it to the deep backward square leg fence, good shot that

9.1 - Hamid to Guptill, FOUR, length delivery outside off, Guptill gets on top of the bounce and drives it on the up square of the wicket, the ball runs away to the fence

5.3 - Nabi to Brendon McCullum, FOUR, touch flatter from Nabi, McCullum backs away and punches it past extra cover, the ball runs away to the fence in no time

3.3 - Shapoor to Brendon McCullum, FOUR, back of a length delivery angling away outside off, McCullum flat-bats it wide of long-off, the ball crashes into the fence in no time

3.1 - Shapoor to Guptill, FOUR, Guptill also joins the party, it was full and outside off, Guptill offers the full face of the bat and drills it past the non-striker, the fielders from mid-off and mid-on give chase, but the ball runs away to the fence

3.0 - Hamid to Brendon McCullum, FOUR, well, McCullum doesn't care whatever length you bowl, this time he clears his front leg and lofts this fuller delivery straight over the bowler, there was a fielder at long-off, but he had no chance of cutting that off running to his right

2.3 - Hamid to Brendon McCullum, FOUR, full delivery outside off, McCullum goes for the drive, gets an outside edge that runs away past the slip and crashes into the third man fence, there was no second slip in place, otherwise it would have gone straight to him

1.0 - Dawlat Zadran to Brendon McCullum, FOUR, back-to-back boundaries for McCullum, it was the inswinging fuller length delivery on off and middle, McCullum just drills it past the non-striker and the ball runs away to the fence, the fielder at mid-on could only see the ball rocket away to the fence

0.5 - Dawlat Zadran to Brendon McCullum, FOUR, McCullum comes charging down the wicket and goes for the loft over the bowler's head, he doesn't time it well, but the ball had enough legs to reach the fence

5.4 - Nabi to Brendon McCullum, SIX, poor delivery from Nabi, drags it well short, McCullum rocks back and muscles the pull over the deep square leg fence for a maximum

33.5 - Shapoor to Elliott, out Elliott Run Out!! New Zealand gift another wicket away. There was never a run in that, but Elliott still went through with it. Fullish and around off, Elliott drives it to mid-off and sets off, Nabi runs forward, gathers the ball and fires a direct hit at the bowler's end, Elliott was on the line, which meant he was short. The third umpire gave the marching orders. Elliott run out (Nabi) 19(28) [4s-1]

26.4 - Dawlat Zadran to Guptill, out Guptill Run Out!! Needless from New Zealand! It is a waste of a wicket. Short of a length around off, Guptill punches it towards point, sets off and stutters in the middle as Taylor was late to respond, then goes for it. Najibullah runs to his right and fires a throw at the non-striker's end, but missed and there was Shenwari running in from mid-on, who collected the ball and under-armed it onto the stumps. He hits the bulls-eye and Guptill was struggling. Guptill run out (Najibullah/Shenwari) 57(76) [4s-7]

18.4 - Shapoor to Williamson, out Caught by Shenwari!! Shapoor strikes against the run of play! It was a very unlike Williamson shot. Short ball on off, Williamson goes back and pulls it straight to short mid-wicket, Shenwari makes no mistake. He could have just tucked it away, but instead decides to take it on. Williamson c Shenwari b Shapoor 33(45) [4s-4]

5.5 - Nabi to Brendon McCullum, out Bowled!! McCullum perishes trying to score more quick runs. It was another short delivery from Nabi, but not that short for McCullum to pull it over deep mid-wicket. He ends up getting an inside edge onto the pad and the ball rolls away onto the stumps. Not a good way to get out, but Afghanistan won't mind it at all. McCullum makes the long walk back after a breezy innings. Brendon McCullum b Nabi 42(19) [4s-6 6s-1]

25.0 - Dawlat Zadran to Guptill, 1 run, Guptill registers his 22nd ODI fifty, first in this World Cup. He was almost deceived by this slower one, it was a full toss as well, Guptill manages to spot it early and steers it down to third man