*Official* Semi Final 1 - Sri Lanka vs New Zealand

[Hurricane]

I'm not just happy we got here tbh. I want us to prove a point tonight, instead of having to listen to "they fought hard and tried their best" after another limp performance in a semi-final.

Smash 'em NZ.

Only sounds good when KiwiNinja says it.

Who's in for watching the game tonight in NZ and who has to work tomorrow and get up in the morning...

 

[Flem274*]

I have one lecture at 9am tomorrow. It's my easy day. So I'll get up for that, come home and crash again from 10-2 or so.

 

[slugger]

i think vettori should play mind tricks on sanga and when the raise his comment at the the toss vettori should say " on reflection Im glad we are playing on the same track, it looks like eden park or sneddon and a good lot of our boys were raised on pitches like this one here, me included."

 

[Days of Grace]

I`m in Japan and the game starts at 6pm here. Going to get the beer and corn chips on the way home from work.

The game finishes at 2am. Luckily, tomorrow I just need to show my face at city hall at 9:30am since it`s the end of term.

I`m getting worked up now. I give us a 30% chance if we bat first, and a 10% chance if we bowl first.

I am wondering if a half-fit Murali will be more dangerous than another fully-fit spinner. I think if they wheeled Murali up to the crease he could still take 4/30 since mentally he ****s all over us.

We have to attack the parttime spinners. If some of the batsmen perish doing so, then so be it.


If we bat first, I'd be happy with anything above 250.

If we bowl first, I would be comfortable with anything under 220.

That's my random thoughts for the match.

****ing smash 'em, New Zealand!

 

[BeeGee]

Only sounds good when KiwiNinja says it.

Who's in for watching the game tonight in NZ and who has to work tomorrow and get up in the morning...

The game starts at 3am here and I have work tomorrow. The plan was to get a few hours sleep in before the game starts, but I couldn't get to sleep.

We have a software release on Thursday, so tomorrow's not going to be fun, but a win would make the lack of sleep a lot more bearable

 

[BeeGee]

For me because we have lost so many semis before I figure we have to win one eventually. Gamblers fallacy I know. I am not nervous just full of anticipation. If we had a 50% chance of winning then I would be nervous but we are underdogs.

Looks like our team is making a big deal out of playing on a used wicket. I reckon we should just pick a team to play to the conditions and stop thinking about it. Vettori was almost insinuating something suspicious was afoot in his interview.

I think he's doing it on purpose. He saw what Allan Donald's speech did to fire them up against SA and I think he wants more of the same:
Black Caps keen to turn around humiliating defeat | Stuff.co.nz

"I think the fact that we lost so heavily to Sri Lanka has been playing on our minds and it's built a little bit of resolve," Vettori said.

"A few things went on in that game that the guys weren't happy about either and hopefully that builds some aggression as well.

"I think this team - the more I look back on it - plays better with a little bit between its teeth and hopefully that's the motivation to get the job done."

 

[Hurricane]

I`m in Japan and the game starts at 6pm here. Going to get the beer and corn chips on the way home from work.

The game finishes at 2am. Luckily, tomorrow I just need to show my face at city hall at 9:30am since it`s the end of term.

I`m getting worked up now. I give us a 30% chance if we bat first, and a 10% chance if we bowl first.

I am wondering if a half-fit Murali will be more dangerous than another fully-fit spinner. I think if they wheeled Murali up to the crease he could still take 4/30 since mentally he ****s all over us.

We have to attack the parttime spinners. If some of the batsmen perish doing so, then so be it.


If we bat first, I'd be happy with anything above 250.

If we bowl first, I would be comfortable with anything under 220.

That's my random thoughts for the match.

****ing smash 'em, New Zealand!

Wonderful posts lads - who else is watching James, Strawman, Ed, Mike, Howsie, KN?

 

[Jono]

Just because I'm bored:

Kiwi fans, what would you rather, to win this World Cup or to beat the Australian team in a test series at home?

 

[biased indian]

why are they using the used wicket...

would love the NZ to bat first and score anything above 200 and bundle out SL for less than 100 with spinners taking all 10 wickets...

 

[James]

We have to bat first to stand any chance I tend to think. Especially if the pitch is as they've said it is. I'd be happy with a score around 215-225.

I'd go for Tuffey over Woodcock or Mckay. The experience factor there and the handy lower order hitting he provides. He's also been over there a little while now unlike Mckay who just flew in a few days ago.

COME ON NEW ZEALAND!!!!

 

[Days of Grace]

Just because I'm bored:

Kiwi fans, what would you rather, to win this World Cup or to beat the Australian team in a test series at home?

World Cup. Have to beat at least three to four very good sides to win it, against beating a mediocre team over two matches living on past glories.

 

[Jono]

lol

 

[Days of Grace]

We have to bat first to stand any chance I tend to think. Especially if the pitch is as they've said it is. I'd be happy with a score around 215-225.

Unless we have them 50/3 or 4, then that will not be enough, IMO.

Look at it this way: you`d be fairly happy if we restricted Sri Lanka to that score.

 

[Mike5181]

Wonderful posts lads - who else is watching James, Strawman, Ed, Mike, Howsie, KN?

Yeah, i will be watching for sure and i have been reading everyone's posts. Go the black caps! I have a calculus test to study for as well. Multi tasking to the extreme.

 

[biased indian]

Unless we have them 50/3 or 4, then that will not be enough, IMO.

Look at it this way: you`d be fairly happy if we restricted Sri Lanka to that score.

if you have them 50/4 with both kumar and mahela in the pavilion you should be able to defend 175 on a turning pitch ..SL have one of the Biggest tail...

 

[Days of Grace]

You have to leave room for one of the tail-enders to play a blinder, which usually happens to us.

 

[KiWiNiNjA]

NZ aren't in the semi-finals of the WC just to make up the numbers.

NZ has a chance to not only make it to the final, but to win it all. They had been written off by nearly everyone before the tournament. Some people were expecting NZ not to make it out of the group stages, expecting NZ to lose to Zimbabwe. Not only did they thrash Zimbabwe, but they also thrashed the eventual Group A winners.

A quarter final against South Africa. No chance! NZ aren't going to make another semi final. Oh, unless South Africa choke again. Yeah, South Africa may have choked but a choke isn't a one sided thing. NZ put in the best fielding display of the tournament, they applied pressure, bowled well and once they had the ascendancy they never let South Africa back in.

But still, they make it to the semi finals and there are still knobs who aren't even giving NZ a chance. "Mismatch unless NZ raise their game"? Are you ****ing kidding me? Yes, Sri Lanka are favourites, but is that sorta headline necessary? NZ has made it to the semi finals after everyone had written them off, and you still don't see that they are capable of winning?

Uhhh, but Sri Lanka beat NZ in the groups by 121 runs, and now they have home advantage. NZ is going to get humiliated. Oh really? The result in that game had little consequence, the winner of this game will go into the final. It's another day, and another chance.

Oh, but the NZ batsmen won't be able to handle the Sri Lanka spinners. Yes, certainly a possibility but these are NZ batsman we are talking about. Hardly a consistent bunch, but if they come off then it can be an entirely different story. If they get off to a good start and build a solid foundation, like in the South Africa game, then they could put the pressure back onto the spinners. It's getting bogged down and playing into the spinners game plan that was the big problem in the last match. It's not like the NZ batsman are completely hopeless against spin, they are just incredibly inconsistent, and when wickets fell early everything fell apart. That's also a confidence thing. Oh noes, we lost early wickets. We can't afford to lose anymore. Plays negatively, continue collapsing. With the SA result, they will go into this match with a lot more belief that they can turn around a bad start.

So we have a team that was never suppose to make it out of their group.
Was never suppose to beat South Africa in the quarter final.
They have beat the Group A winner and the Group B winner.
Why shouldn't they be able to win the whole tournament?
Why shouldn't they be given some sort of respect?
They certainly deserve it, they haven't made it this far on luck.

This is basically the same team that was ranked #2 about a year ago. Yeah, they had a really bad run of results. Yeah, they got beaten by Bangladesh. So what?
That sort of **** can happen when all the batsman start struggling at the same time. They were a team that always bowled well and were let down by the batsman. Well, now Taylor has started to find some decent form. If just two of Guptill, McCullum, Ryder, and Taylor get a decent start then they could build a large score. The bowling line-up can certainly defend 250.

But the Sri Lanka batsman are in great form, they beat England by 10 wickets in a canter. Well, that English bowling line-up wasn't exactly great, was it? The middle order hasn't had a bat in a while either.

NZ are underdogs. No one expects them to win. But hey, they have the talent to beat Sri Lanka. Pat Symcox might not think so, but he's an ignorant hack.

Exceeding expectations?
That's a losers mentality. I'm sure the NZ team believe they can win. I'm sure the NZ team will be disappointed if they lose. NZ cricket fans should be disappointed if they lose.


For all the so-called experts who have written you off.
For all the cliche drivel that gets spewed forth in every article.

****ing smash 'em NZ!

 

[Athlai]

NZ are underdogs. No one expects them to win.

AWTA z

 

[Jono]

Hear hear. Long may NZ continue punching above their weight and knocking off the powerful Lankans.









*runs*

 

[Mike5181]

I'm with James on Daryl Tuffey. I think he would suit our style of play better and he could ideally play a Jacob Oram like role, choking the runs in the middle overs and bowling to our field. I think James Franklin of all people bowled really economical against them in the first Sri Lanka game.

f we get them chasing on this pitch the likes of Styris, Oram and the spinners we are in with a shot. Sri Lanka's top order is where they get most of their runs so some freakish wickets like Amla's in the last game would help as well.

Aggression is the key as well. So whoever is the water boy this time better come with a well scripted mouthful for the Sri Lankan batsmen. Send in Allan Donald i think.