Kane Williamson clubbed a six from the first ball of the 24th over in an unbeaten innings of 45 which hoisted New Zealand to a one-wicket win over Australia in a breathless preliminary skirmish Saturday between the Cricket World Cup co-hosts.
New Zealand paceman Trent Boult had taken five wickets for three runs in his second spell to complete career-best figures of 5-27 as Australia was bowled out for 151 in 32.2 overs.
Brendon McCullum then made 50 from 21 balls as New Zealand appeared to be cruising to victory at 78-1 in the eighth over.
But Mitchell Starc took 6-28 to wreck the New Zealand innings and leave Williamson to lead a desperate rearguard action to save the match and New Zealand’s unbeaten record in Pool A.
Teams(from):
New Zealand: Brendon McCullum(c), Trent Boult, Grant Elliott, Tom Latham, Martin Guptill, Mitchell McClenaghan, Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Adam Milne, Daniel Vettori, Kane Williamson, Corey Anderson, Tim Southee, Luke Ronchi(wk), Ross Taylor
Australia: Michael Clarke(c), George Bailey, David Warner, Aaron Finch, Shane Watson, Steven Smith, Brad Haddin(wk), Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, James Faulkner, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins, Xavier Doherty
New Zealand edge spirited Australia by 1 wicket in World Cup thriller
