New Zealand v England at Wellington

9th Match, Pool A : Feb 20, 2015

starts in 3 hours .

That Home advantage is paying dividends for the Kiwis !

Both Boult and Southee were on Hat Tricks as they removed the top order !

England need to Win the Toss 

- The Cake Tin as it is known to locals - may not have the capacity of the MCG ;

33,000 passionate New Zealand supporters will ensure the atmosphere remains just as hostile.

The difference in mentality between the teams is illustrated by their aims.

While England talk of trying to qualify for the quarter-final and then taking it from there,

New Zealand are trying to win with a good net run rate to ensure they qualify as high

as possible in the group.

The fact is, Eoin Morgan - or Eon Rogers as the mayor of Wellington referred to him -  ::LOL::

has scored two runs in his last five innings in all cricket

and passed five only once in his last eight ODI innings.

It is not a sustainable run of form.

Gary Ballance adds some solidity to the batting and, though they miss the option offered by

Ravi Bopara's all-round skills, Joe Root can contribute a few overs if required.

Alex Hales has impressed the management in the nets and Chris Jordan enjoyed a prolonged

spell with the ball and the bat in practice :

but it is hard to see a way in for either of them at present.

England are going to have to make some serious improvements if they are to have any chance to win this match. Hopefully Jimmy and Broady will benefit from potentially more swing in New Zealand. Given that England haven't chased down 250 in more than a year, I'd prefer they bat first.

[quote author=ketchim link=topic=95965.msg620251#msg620251 date=1424382343]
England need to Win the Toss 
[/quote]
[quote author=dillinger10 link=topic=95965.msg620292#msg620292 date=1424387817]
I'd prefer they bat first.
[/quote]

Yes sir : Win toss , Bat !  8)

England win the toss and decide to bat first. This looks like a good toss to win, especially as the wicket might pick up pace later on. England and New Zealand both unchanged.

11/0 aftert 3