ABOC-Cricinfo

Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor styles it 2-0 for Kiwis

On an impeccable batting stripe at McLean Park, centuries from Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor driven New Zealand to 369, a total that verified well out of Pakistan's grasp despite the stand laid by their openers. The requesting rate kept rising on Pakistan, and their middle and lower order fell away to give New Zealand a 115-run win with close to7th overs left to play.

Shahid Afridi commends Ross Taylor after the concluding's century.Shahid Afridi commends Ross Taylor subsequently the latter's century.Ahmed Shehzad and Mohammad Hafeez put on 111 for the 1^st wicket, and while their counting rate was beneath the compulsory rate, they set Pakistan up for an uncompromising exertion in the last 20 overs. At the 30-over mark, they were two miserable and needed 203 with Mohammad Hafeez still at the wrinkle on 80.

Pakistan took the batting Powerplay at that point, and Mohammad Hafeez fluctuated the first ball from Grant Elliott over the square leg boundary. Looking for a replication the next ball, nevertheless, he holed out off a slower ball. In came Shahid Afridi, encouraged up the order, but he chop for 11 and Umar Akmal trailed in the next over. There could only be one result thereafter.

Batting first after winning the toss, Brendon McCullum provided the innings thrust at the start, and Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson kept that energy going with a 128-run 2^nd-wicket opinion before Ross Taylor added the final curlicue. New Zealand scored 116 in their last 10 overs, during which time Ross Taylor cracked 73 in 36 balls.

After swinging in otiose at a pair of slower full-tosses outside off from Bilawal Bhatti in the finishing over, Ross Taylor was on 92 with two balls outstanding. He sent the last but one ball of the innings mounting into the crowd beyond deep extra cover, and complete with a thick outdoor edge to the third man boundary. Ross Taylor's unbeaten 102 was New Zealand's 100th ODI century.

Although Ross Taylor's innings comprised plenty of his characteristic clubs over the leg side, Kane Williamson's was full of sprightly footwork and pretty knocks. For all that, it was no less cruel in its pace, and his century came up in 80 balls. Martin Guptill looked on sequence for a hundred as well, and was distressed after getting himself out, introduction a full-toss from the part-time leg spinner Ahmed Shehzad straight into long-off's hands.

That unexpected wicket apart, the bowlers who complete up Pakistan's fifth-bowler quota - a problem they are likely to contend with right through the World Cup if Mohammad Hafeez doesn't clear the tests on his bowling action - conceded 93 runs in 12 overs. That they bowled that countless overs was down to the detail that two of their front pace, Bilawal Bhatti and Ehsan Adil, gave away more than eight and over. By Junaid Khan out of the World Cup 2015, neither Bilawal Bhatti nor Ehsan Adil made any sort of case for their enclosure as his additional.

Taking one of the two new balls, Bilawal Bhatti went for 21 in his first two overs, bowling either too short or too full and surrendering three fours or a six to Brendom McCullum. At the other end, Mohammad Irfan was bowling a close-fitting line and producing sufficiently of bounce to keep the openers comparatively quiet. Bilawal Bhatti's extravagance forced Pakistan to carry on Shahid Afridi as initial as the 6^th over, and he made the breakthrough in his 2^nd over, compelling Brendom McCullum to chop on while playing one cut shot too many. Shahid Afridi would have dismissed Brendom McCullum in his first over had Sarfraz Ahmed not dropped up a stumping.

Later, in the 38th over of New Zealand's innings, Sarfraz Ahmed missed another stumping off Shahid Afridi, when Ross Taylor was on 25.

In amongst, Kane Williamson and Guptill had put on a century stand at contentedly over a run-a-ball, without demanding to play any outlandish shots. Pakistan's bowlers – Mohammad Irfan and Afridi apart - were giving them sufficiently of freebies, and the ball was coming on so well that Martin Guptill could merely take a step advancing and play pick-up shots over the midwicket region and Kane Williamson could skip down the path and chip the seamers over wide mid-off.

At the 30-over mark, New Zealand were 181-2 wickets. Replication this, by the old logic of 50-over cricket, would give those 360, and this is indeed what they accomplished.

Williamson strolled former his hundred and fell in the fourth over of the batting Powerplay, trying to scoop Irfan over short fine leg but not quite management the satisfactory elevation. If Pakistan thought they could apply the footbrakes at that point, they were wrong. Grant Elliott and Taylor zapped Bilawal Bhatti for sixes in the 43rd over, Ross Taylor's clearing the stadium roof. Bhatti went for 21 in his next over, the principal of the innings, with Taylor smacking him for three fours and a six, two of those shots imminent off full-tosses.

Elliott holed out to Adil soon afterward, but Taylor carried on swinging, and spoiled Irfan's figures with three consecutive fours at the start of his final over. Till that argument, he had specified away 37 runs in 9^th overs.