Heartbreak in Paradise

By Rahul Patil

Heartbreaks are a part of life. “Tis better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all” – Alfred Tennyson.

 A day after the heartbreak of the 2019 ODI World Cup final, Jimmy Neesham tweeted “Kids, don’t take up sport. Take up baking or something. Die at 60 really fat and happy.” I met Neesham six months later at Jeetan Patel’s farewell in the members lounge of the Basin Reserve. I had to ask him about that day at Lords and whether he had gotten over the heartbreak. He said he still had nightmares and wasn’t sure if he would ever be able to get over it. Four years later the same Jimmy Neesham tried his best to take the blackcaps over the line in another World Cup game and unfortunately, fell short once again. After the match I asked Jimmy if kids should take up cricket. A four-year older and battle hardened Neesham laughed and responded with “Definitely take up cricket. Take up whatever they want to take up.”

As a cricket storyteller I am blessed that I get to follow the blackcaps across the world and see them produce magic on a regular basis. But there are only a handful of occasions which count as the “I was there moment”. Brendon McCullum’s 302 at the Basin Reserve, Tim Southee’s 7 wicket haul against England at a packed Wellington Stadium, Martin Guptill’s 237* against West Indies in the 2015 World Cup quarterfinal, and New Zealand defeating England in a test match at the Basin Reserve by 1 run earlier this year. The Dharamshala ODI is another addition to that list. As the voice of Indian cricket – Harsha Bhogle aptly tweeted “One team won the match, the other won our hearts.”

The Aussies came out of the blocks like a 100 mtr sprinter. Fast and furious. It seemed like they had forgotten it was an ODI and started in T20 mode from ball one. Travis Head couldn’t have hoped for a better pitch to make a comeback to the Australian side. Remember the Aussies chose to select him in the 15 even though he was injured for the initial part of the tournament. After watching him yesterday one can understand why. I was mentally prepared to see David Warner take his helmet off and jump high to celebrate another century, but unfortunately he fell short of a well-deserved century and disappointed both, the fans and a large Australian media contingent as well.

I was surprised at the lack of discipline by New Zealand’s bowlers until Glenn Phillips came on to bowl. It’s scary to think about what New Zealand would have been chasing if it hadn’t been for his figures of 10-0-37-3. To put things into context the next best economy rate across both teams was 6.2 compared to his 3.7. Phenomenal stuff. The amount of effort Phillips puts into his bowling at every net session clearly paying rewards. It was his control that brought the blackcaps back into the game. You might say 388 is hardly a comeback but trust me at one stage 450+ was on the cards. New Zealand’s fielding especially their catching also let them down on a day where wickets were hard to come by. Although the Aussie middle order struggled, cameos by Maxwell, Inglis and Cummins late in their innings ensured that they got to a massive total.

It was supposed to be a rare day game in this world of day night cricket. But the sun sets early on the slopes of the Himalayas which meant most of New Zealand’s innings ended up being played under lights. The hunt for 389 is never easy. But if you ever had to chase down a massive score the conditions were perfect. A belter of a pitch, a small ground, a fast outfield and the 1500 mtr altitude that makes the ball travel much further through the thinner air. The start provided by Conway and Young was perfect. My 7-year-old loves Paw Patrol. If she was watching she would have said “Babuji (which means dad in Indian) Chase is on the case”. But when they were dismissed in quick succession the only question on everybody’s mind was, how much was New Zealand’s net run rate going to suffer?

There are two ways of chasing huge totals. You either throw caution to the wind, go hammer and tongs and win in 45 overs. Or you take it deep one run at a time and see if the opposition starts feeling the pressure as you start getting closer and closer to the target. Rachin & Mitchell opted for the latter. They built the run chase one brick at a time. Mitchell got to 50, tried to up the ante and holed out to long-on. The pair had already got 9 in the over and it was the last ball of the over. Reverse sweeps look great when they come off. Unfortunately for Latham it led to his downfall. Did we need the runs? Yes. Did he choose the right ball to play the shot? Probably not. Phillips had a blinder with the ball but delivering with the bat in situations like this is his forte. A high risk shot on the last ball of an over in which the blackcaps had already got 9? Once again not the best decision. A few small things to think about when the dust settles.

Rachin’s stock has risen tremendously in the last three weeks. He is not only scoring lots of international runs but the manner in which he is doing it is remarkable. A blistering century while chasing against the defending World champions, a counter attacking 75 against the hosts and tournament favorites and a second century under tremendous scoreboard pressure against the 5-time world champions. What stands out is his ability to read situations and change his game accordingly. The elegance of a left hander, the poise, the calmness under pressure and the ability to switch gears on demand are all the makings of a stellar international career. He’s quickly become a crowd favorite too. Chants of Rachin…. Rachin which were reserved for only one man before this echoed on the slopes of the Himalayas. The cricketing universe has found its latest star. Some people might hate me for saying this, but a massive IPL contract is only a matter of time.

When Rachin departed New Zealand still needed 96 from 58 deliveries. There was a collective sigh of relief from every Australian supporter. Little did they know that this team does not know the meaning of giving up. They fight, they take blows, but they have a great chin which always keeps getting up and fighting a bit more. Neesham took the reins of the run chase in his own hands and with support from Santner, Henry, and Boult made sure that the blackcaps stayed in the race. Slowly the pendulum of pressure swung from New Zealand to Australia and cracks started to appear in the Australian defense. In the end it came to 7 required of 2 balls. Neesham got a high full toss on leg stump which he tried to hit to Mount Everest. Unfortunately, in the eagerness to hit it out of the park he didn’t time it well at all and eventually led to his run out in trying to go for a non-existent second run. Australia won by 5 runs. Not quite the barest of margins but pretty damn close.

So, after four wins in a row the blackcaps have now lost two. They have played well though. They came within a wicket of having a crack at India’s brittle lower order and they came within a shot of chasing down 389. To qualify comfortably for the semis, they need to win 2 of their remaining 3 matches. The good news is that their net run rate is solid which means that if it comes down to that, they should be fine. South Africa will be a challenging opponent on a flat Pune deck. Who knows which Pakistan will turn up in Bengaluru and Sri Lanka are unpredictable too. Even though the blackcaps lost both games in Dharamshala they have done the mahi, and I am confident that the treats will follow.

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