Against England, New Zealand was just 54 runs away from securing a semifinal position with seven wickets in hand and 27 balls remaining. But New Zealand lost, which makes it more challenging before their Group 1 match against erratic Ireland. If they suffer one more loss, a door will open for England and Australia to slip by them and go to the last four.
New Zealand has only been successful in this World Cup while batting first and defending totals. In their match with Australia, they scored 66 runs in the final six overs before dismissing the opposition for 111. They scored 65 against Sri Lanka in the last five before holding the opposition to 8 for 4.
When they had to depart from that plan for the first time, against England, their bowlers struggled early on and their batsmen seemed to buckle under the strain of the necessary rate.
Before playing on a bigger stage against a more difficult opponent, New Zealand will seek to correct mistakes from the England match. However, dislodging Ireland won’t be an easy process. Soon after crushing the West Indies by nine wickets and chasing down 177 against Scotland from a position of 61 for 4, they upset England in a game that was cut short by the weather.
The lone T20 World Cup match between these two sides occurred back in 2009, when New Zealand easily defeated them by an 83-run margin. Only Stirling has participated in that match for any of the current teams.
Ireland’s bowlers facing issues
Except for Josh Little, Ireland’s fast bowlers have had trouble getting wickets. While Mark Adair has gone four games without a wicket and was hauled for 59 in his last game against Australia, Barry McCarthy and Curtis Campher have averages in the high 30s. They now have one final opportunity to influence this competition.
Stephen Doheny, an untried opener, Graham Hume, and Conor Olphert, two fast bowlers, are the only unused members of the Irish team. Ireland wouldn’t mind giving one of the seamers a shot given the present group’s lackluster results, even though Doheny might not find a spot at the top.
Pitch and Weather Reports
There won’t be any rain in Adelaide on Friday, so the weather is predicted to be lovely. Expect the bowlers to avoid the shorter lengths given the large straight boundaries and short square boundaries present at the location.
IRE vs NZ Predicted Playing 11
Ireland: Paul Stirling, Andy Balbirnie (capt), Lorcan Tucker (wk), Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair/Graham Hume, Fionn Hand, Barry McCarthy/Conor Olphert, Josh Little.
New Zealand: Finn Allen, Devon Conway (wk), Kane Williamson (capt), Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson.
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