Ahmedabad: Unbeaten centurions Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra produced their own version of bruising Bazball’ as New Zealand hammered defending champions England by nine wickets in the World Cup opener here on Thursday.
After England posted a below par 282 for 9 largely due to Joe Root’s pragmatic 77, New Zealand romped to 283 for 1 in just 36.2 overs, courtesy buccaneering hundreds by Conway (152 off 121 balls) and Ravindra (123 off 96 balls).
While New Zealand, who regularly punch above their weight in the ICC events, put the rest of the teams on notice with that brutal onslaught, England will have to do more than one boardroom session to regain some confidence.
Kiwis would thank Conway and Ravindra for that, who creamed a record-breaking 273 off 211 balls during their stunning unbroken second wicket alliance.
For the record, this was the fourth highest stand for any wicket in the World Cup.
The 23-year-old Ravindra, who became the third youngest batter to score a hundred on World Cup debut, and Conway produced a masterclass of cricketing shots all around to ground to leave England gasping for breath.
To drive in a bit of perspective to Ravindra’s innings, he stands behind Virat Kohli (22 years) and Andy Flower (23 years, 301 days) in that list of young century makers.
The trophy holders simply could not muster any response to the assault by the Kiwis pair which began as early as in the second over.
Ravindra brought up his maiden century in his 13th ODI and first in the World Cup, whereas Conway’s ton was his fifth in the format, first in the World Cup and second against England.
Having batted only once at the No. 3 position in his fledgling career, Ravindra matched Conway in strokes all around the ground, displaying the authority of a top-drawer player.
Ravindra’s outstanding 123 (11x4s, 5x6s) may as well have given New Zealand a happy headache since his
runs came at the position usually occupied by regular captain Kane Williamson, who is recuperating from his surgery.
Having amassed 672 runs for IPL 2023 winners Chennai Super Kings, Conway went about his job as if
the field here was like his backyard.