The Cricket World T20 Championships concluded yesterday night with the less fancied Australia winning the Trophy beating an ever consistent New Zealand in a Final which turned out to be a bit one sided. Infact the Kiwis walked straight into a Desert Storm named ‘ Mitchel Marsh ‘ and were virtually swept away.
However, it would be fair to say that the Kiwis started well ( albeit losing the toss ) and Kane Williamson, the simple, unassuming captain of the Black Caps, played one of his finest T20 innings and one of the best I have seen. His strokes had all class written over them as he pounded the boundaries with effortless ease. His quicker than usual 85 laid the foundation of a respectable 172 by the Kiwis and considering their very disciplined bowling attack I felt that the scales had slightly tilted against the Aussies and with Aaron Finch failing with the bat again it appeared as if the Kiwis had their noses in front.
Entered Mitchel Marsh and scored 14 runs of the first three balls he faced. The loss of Aaron Finch was soon forgotten and coupled with a resurgent David Warner, the Aussies landed a few hefty punches on the Kiwis, who were rattled no end. Barring a brilliant Trent Boult and a steady Santner, all the other bowlers were hammered by the duo of Marsh and Warner. Ish Sodhi who had a great tournament coming into the finals had no answer to the assault, bowled too short and inspite of Boult castling Warner, a nervous Ish Sodhi was just unable to keep Mitch Marsh in check. A very potent weapon of the Kiwis had been blunted.
Mitch Marsh, whose talent was never in doubt, had been in and out of the Australian team in all formats due to long injury layoffs. Mitch had always promised a lot but recurring injuries had dampened his career prospects again and again. However it was a sweet redemption for the Aussie. Blessed with raw strength, a decent technique and amazing short making abilities,Mitch was just unstoppable and shut all doors for the Kiwis to come back in the game. More importantly he remained till the end and saw off the victory for his team. His 77 of 50 balls laced with 6 fours and 4 sixes shall be remembered for some time to come.
David Warner who had a terrible IPL, and a poor start to the tournament made a resounding comeback and alongwith Mitch Marsh was one of the reasons why Australia won the World Cup. The few, who had written off the great Warner, were made to eat their words by a stubborn Aussie spirit. He deservedly was named the Player of the Tournament, not merely for the runs he scored, but the way he scored them. His quickfire knocks against Bangladesh and West Indies helped the Aussies to a better net run rate which eventually helped them beat South Africa to the semifinal spot.
New Zealand, though came second, have been a dominant side since the past 3-4 years. Losing the ODI World Cup by a whisker, winning the World Test Championships and runners up in the World T20 is proof enough of the consistency of the Black Caps, led by Williamson, a remarkable captain who in no uncertain terms epitomises the Gentleman’s Game.
Lastly, the truth is that the one who perseveres, wins eventually . After all the disappointments Mitchel Marsh finally had his day. The skilful and proficient Kiwis just couldn’t stop him. His time has come and my advice to the other teams is simple……Beware of Mitch, he is there to slay.