Published: Jun 16, 2015, 01:36 PM (IST)
Edited: Jun 17, 2015, 02:31 PM (IST)
New Zealand will take on England in the fourth of the five-match One-Day International (ODI) series at Nottingham with an aim to seal the series which they are currently leading 2-1. England on the other hand, will look to stay in the series and put in a good performance after two defeats on a trot. SCORECARD: England vs New Zealand 4th ODI at Nottingham
England started the series really well, by posting a score of over 400 for the first time in their ODI history and then beating the visitors by a record 210-run margin. The tables turned in the second game where the Kiwis posted a total nearing 400 and had it not been for the rain to intervene, one argues that England might have chased it down.
England’s resurgence in the one-dayers is a breath of fresh air, the manner in which they have gone about being positive all the time and has already reaped them rich rewards. Alex Hales, Jason Roy have given them the starts and the strong middle order of Joe Root, Eoin Morgan and Jos Buttler have all been among the runs. READ: New Zealand bowlers have to get their act together against England
Their performance though dipped a bit in the third ODI where they lost their last five wickets for just 14 runs to squander a chance of scoring another total in excess of 350 and were bowled out for 302. It has been a series to forget for the bowlers from both sides with the bat dominating the ball a bit too much.
New Zealand won the last game by three wicket thanks to the twin tons from Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor. England will need to find a way to stop the Kiwis from running away with the series with some disciplined bowling. READ: ICC must come to rescue of bowlers as Eng vs NZ ODI series turns out to be a run-fest
England have opted for the Overton brothers in the squad, who become the first twins to play for England. Adil Rashid has been among the wickets and with Sam Billings playing a good cameo in the last game, expect both of them to be retained. David Willey did well to pick up three wickets in the and one gets the feeling, that England might be tempted to rest Mark Wood and Steven Finn if they are to play the twins.
New Zealand, though, do not have any such worries to adhere to, despite losing Trent Boult to back injury, the Kiwis had their job done as his replacement, Ben Wheeler making his ODI debut, picked up three wickets which were crucial in keeping the hosts in check. Tim Southee had not been taking enough wickets and he too got amongst the wickets taking three for 44 in the third ODI. The only worry for them in bowling has been the form of Mitchell McClenaghan and Michael Santner — both have not quite made an impact and with England coming hard at New Zealand, the Kiwis will hope to fix this chink in their armour.
In the batting department, barring the openers, Martin Guptill and Brendon McCullum, the middle order has enjoyed their time in the middle, especially Taylor who has hit two tons in two games now. With Williamson back in the run-scoring form and the lower middle order contributing with good cameos, New Zealand will know that their skipper is due and with a series to be won with a game to spare is possible, the Kiwis will wish their openers give them a stronger platform to take full toll of. READ: England have finally woken up to modern cricket
All three ODIs in this series so far have been high scoring and expect nothing different at Nottingham with shorter boundaries at one side to aid the batsmen. With both teams eager to play at their aggressive best, expect another cracker of the game in this evenly contested series so far.
Squads:
England: Eoin Morgan (c), Alex Hales, Craig Overton, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, James Taylor, David Willey, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler (wk), Steven Finn, Mark Wood. Withdrawn players: Chris Jordan, Liam Plunkett
New Zealand: Brendon McCullum (c), Martin Guptill, Luke Ronchi (wk), Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Corey Anderson, Grant Elliott, Nathan McCullum, Tim Southee, Mitchell McClenaghan, Trent Boult, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Mitchell Santner, Ben Wheeler.
Time: 14:00 local | 13:00 GMT | 18:30 IST
(Nikhil Popat is a diehard cricket enthusiast and a PotterHead till the end of time. He can be followed on Twitter @CricCrazyNIKS)
