Cricket World Cup 2023, ENG vs NZ: Henry, spinners restrict England to 282

Matt Henry and Kiw spinners Mitchell Santner and Glenn Phillips were in their element as New Zealand restricted the defending champions to 282/9 in the first innings

New Zealand restricted defending champions England to 282/9 in the first match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad Gujarat. Kiwi Skipper Tom Latham won the toss and decided to bowl first. Though Trent Boult was hit for a six in the first over itself, the Blackcaps did not let the pressure mount on them as Matt Henry struck in the eighth over to get rid of Dawid Malan. 

Once the first wicket was down, the men in black found rhythm in their steps and the spinners got going. Mitchell Staner got Jonny Bairstow and Rachin Ravindra removed Harry Brook. Moeen Ali was bowled by Glenn Phillips to keep the wickets coming at regular intervals for the Kiwis. 

England couldn’t arrest the fall of their wickets even as skipper Jos Buttler and former captain Joe Root added 70 for the fifth wicket. Once Henry came back to get rid of Buttler, Lima Livingstone, Root, Chris Woakes and Sam Curran followed suit. The last wicket stand between Mark Wood and Adil Rashid of 30 off just 24 balls have kept the English in the game. 

The Kiwis will have to bat smartly to get to this tricky total as the wicket is slow and England spinners Adil Rashid and Ali would come in handy. Mark Wood would be a big threat early on in the innings. 

For England, Root was the top-scorer with 77 off 86 balls while Henry was the best bowler with figures of 3/48 for the Kiwi side.