NZ vs Australia - ACG - 4th ODI

So we head to Brisbane with the series drawn at 2-2.  Tuesday night’s loss had turned this series into a real nail bitter. 

It was another typical belter at Adelaide, a ground known for its great batting decks, this one, no different.  Dan won the toss and we wanted to bat first, so we did. 

Before play both teams lined up for a moments silence in memory of the people that have lost their lives in the bushfires in Victoria.  This has been a very surreal event to be over here and living through.  The news is constant, the papers a full of pics and stories and I really just can’t handle it.  I’m on the outside looking in and I just can’t watch or read any media.  It just gets to me so much, my over active imagination starts thinking of what if it was my family over here going through this.  What if it was our house that had gone, if my parents, my family had been caught up in it?  I just can’t imagine what these people are going through.  I just play cricket for a living, it’s the best job in the world, I’m so happy about where I’m at and what I’m doing and then there are these people that have just lost everything, and more!  My deepest sympathies go out to all the people involved and the ones directly affected.  And to the people out there fighting the fires, dealing with the misplaced families, the volunteers and the people that have given so generously to the funds you people are amazing!

Baz’s shoulder had come through ok, so he opened with Gups.  Good little start from these two, 69 for the first wicket into the 18^th over, sure they weren’t racing along but nothing helps more at the end of an innings than wickets in hand, especially when setting a total.  We then lost two more wickets for the addition of 17 runs.  69-1 to 86-3 is a big setback and it took another good partnership from Taylor and Elliott to put us back into a position that we could launch from at the death.  Rossco and TS are in great form, they put on 55 in 11 overs through the middle of the innings, is steadied the ship and calmed a few nerves in the viewing area. 

When TS was dismissed for 26 of 28 we were 141, six wickets in hand and 16 overs left; pretty handy position to launch from and look for around 260.  Not to be, we lost Cumming in the next over which was a huge loss for us and him; he’s been in some pretty good form in the domestic competition back home, I should know, he’s taken me for a few runs this summer.

We scrapped our way to 244 with a good knock from Millsy.  Rossco innings was great; he was dismissed in the power play off a ball that he generally puts about 20 rows back, just one of those things, but his knock gave us a good chance!

It had been a pretty cold day so far, easily the coldest of the tour so far, and in saying that we’ve managed to miss pretty much all of the very hot weather that has been around.  We’ve been playing in temps of 30-38C but the days either side of the matches have been up into the mid 40’s; we’ve been very lucky, especially bowling first in the heat.

I headed out to the field with three layers on top as opposed to just the playing shirt as it has been in the previous three games, it was going to be hard to keep the hands warm and get the body back ready to bowl again in the later spells. 

I bowled pretty well today; my areas were more consistent than in the three previous games.  I wasn’t running in quite as quick and it felt pretty smooth through my action.  I still have some consistency things to work on, but on the whole I was pretty happy with my bowling.  My first ball I bowled Clarke hit me over the top of TS at mid on who got a couple of fingertips to it, a chance first ball, it just could be my day, and three balls later and I’ve got Clarke to hit one to Fults at short cover, happy days!  As good a start as I could have asked for. 

I came back on towards the end of the innings, we needed a wicket, and I couldn’t deliver two overs for seven with two overs left in my ten.

We really needed to break the partnership, mid on and mid off up, a slip in and playing with the dice.  My ninth over went for too many as Hussey took the bait to hit over the up field.  He did it well and I didn’t quite get my lengths right, next over was back to the simple death plan, and it paid off; David Hussey out second ball.  This was the gamble we took at Sydney too, try to get wickets or restrict runs, in this instance trying to restrict runs by going death maybe was the better option, for me anyway.

We hadn’t scored enough runs, but we still didn’t really give ourselves a chance with the ball.  Millsy, again, was brilliant and since this spell of bowling I had some good chats with him on how he constructs his overs and his spells; personally it’s good to be doing pretty well and learning at the same time.

I’ve been picked in the T20 team that will be staying on for the one T20 in Sydney on the 15^th.  Really looking forward to making my T20 debut, should be a whole pile of nervous fun!  But first, Friday, a hugely important and special match.  We have the chance to do something not ever been done before, win an ODI series in Australia.  A real good feel around the team for this one and we can’t wait to play the 5^th match of the series in front of a big, and friendly, crowd at the Gabba.

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