Summary Kiwis won the toss and opted to bat and put a total of 142 on the board
DHARAMSALA (AFP/Web Desk) - New Zealand defeated Australia by 8 runs in the ICC World T20 fixture of Group 2, played on Friday, reported Dunya News.
Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson won the toss and elected to bat first. New Zealand openers Guptill and Williamson batted quite aggresively in the opening overs of the match and thrashed the Aussie bowlers to all parts of the ground. But the Aussies took quick wickets in the middle of the innings and slowed the progress of the charging Kiwis, restricting them to 142 with the loss of 8 wickets. Guptill scored 39 and Elliott was run out for 27 whereas Faulkner took two wickets for Australia.
Australian batsmen made a promising start to their innings but soon lost their track. New Zealand bowlers striked regularly and rattled the Aussie batting line-up. Australia were able to make 134 runs with the loss of 9 wickets within their 20 overs as the Kiwis won the contest by 8 runs. Usman Khawaja scored 38 runs for Australia whereas Mitchell McClenaghan picked up 3 wickets.
New Zealand spinner Nathan McCullum made way for Mitchell McClenaghan despite playing a leading role during the Black Caps shock opening victory over hosts India on Tuesday.
Australia elected to play two spinners, Ashton Agar and Adam Zampa, with paceman Josh Hazlewood missing out in what is the team s opening match in a tournament they have never won.
New Zealand:
Kane Williamson (captain), Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, Corey Anderson, Ross Taylor, Grant Elliott, Mitchell Santner, Luke Ronchi, Adam Milne, Mitchell McClenaghan, Ish Sodhi
Australia:
Steven Smith (captain), Usman Khawaja, Shane Watson, David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, James Faulkner, Peter Nevill, Ashton Agar, Adam Zampa, Nathan Coulter-Nile
