New Zealander Glenn Phillips has rescued the Black Caps after an early collapse against Sri Lanka threatened to derail their T20 World Cup campaign on Saturday evening.
The 25-year-old became only the second New Zealander to score a men’s T20 World Cup century, with 104 (64) to guide the Kiwis to a respectable total of 7/167 at the SCG.
After their previous game against Afghanistan was abandoned due to the weather, the Black Caps needed three straight wins in the Super 12 to secure their place in the semi-finals.
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But the New Zealanders were in early trouble after losing three wickets in the Powerplay, with openers Devon Conway and Finn Allen both dismissed by the Sri Lankan spinners for 1.
New Zealand were suddenly reeling at 3/15 when captain Kane Williamson was caught behind for 8, heading a Kasun Rajitha delivery to the wicketkeeper.
Daryl Mitchell, who missed last week’s match against Australia through injury, combined with Phillips for a crucial 84-run fourth-wicket partnership to resurrect New Zealand’s innings, patiently batting the intermediate overs
Phillips was given an extra life in the 12th, with Pathum Nissanka missing a long regulation chance in the seventh. And it proved costly, with the hapless Kiwi bringing up his second T20I century less than an hour later.
He lifted the goal with a powerful shot, leaping into the air before waving to the 15,121 spectators and roaring with delight.
The right-hander needed 61 deliveries to reach triple figures, becoming the first player batting at No. 4 or lower to score a century in the Men’s T20 World Cup.
New Zealand scored 91 runs from the final seven, 63 of which came with Phillips’ bat.
Sure enough, he rotated his grip slightly during the at-bat, tilting the face of the bat skyward to increase his chances of launching the ball into the crowd, which he did four times.
“It was a very special knock and hats off to the way he played, it was amazing,” Mitchell said.
“He’s got a lot of talent, but to do that on a surface like that, that was a challenge at times, I haven’t seen many top T20s batting under that kind of pressure.”
Phillips was eventually dismissed by Sri Lankan seamer Lahiru Kumara in the final over, giving the boundary runner a catch that had been away. None of his teammates scored more than 22.
He had already cemented his place on the T20 World Cup highlight reel with a spectacular catch in the field against Australia last weekend.
Sri Lanka’s run chase got off to a horrendous start, with veteran spinners Trent Boult and Tim Southee picking up four wickets in the Powerplay to leave the reigning Asia Cup champions in dire straits at 4/8.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa stemmed the flow of wickets with an entertaining 34 (22) and skipper Dasun Shanak scored a patient 35 (32) before the New Zealand spinners set about clearing the tail in the middle.
Sri Lanka eventually managed 102, falling 65 runs short of the target. Boult finished with career-best figures of 4/13 from four overs, while tweakers Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi claimed two scalps.
New Zealand take on England in a must-win clash at the Gabba on Tuesday evening, with first ball scheduled for 7pm AEDT.
“I think momentum in tournaments like this is absolutely crucial,” Phillips told reporters in the post-match press conference.
“We’re treating every game with that respect and trying to do the best we can with any given situation, with any field we’re shown or if the weather plays into it as well.”