Humble Pie

Hello and welcome back to my blog

THEY DID IT!

The New Zealand Black Caps have booked a spot in the final of the 2009 Champions Trophy with a professional victory over Pakistan. Forced to field on a flat, if slow, track they showed patience and accuracy in keeping the unpredictable Pakistan batting line-up to a modest 233 for 9 (50 overs) before Elliott and Vettori guided them to the target with 13 balls to spare.

Although I was unable to witness the entire match, the first 30 overs of the New Zealand bowling effort impressed me. Daniel Vettori controlled the match beautifully and deserved his man of the match award for his captaincy as well as his 3 wickets and 41 runs. The whole team appeared to lift their game slightly - particularly in the field where their energy resulted in numerous run out chances. The only blemish would be the dismissal of Martin Guptil who has batted really well in this tournament so far, but once again was tempted by the success of one pull-shot and played another only to top edge for what seems the hundredth time. I have complained about this issue before and surely someone in the NZ camp notices it too

However, my post today is about a number of people who need to eat some humble pie. For those who say that we need Shane Bond to succeed, an opinion mentioned several times during the commentary, the other bowlers are not the worst in the world. Those who continue to dismiss the abilities of Grant Elliott as a stop gap measure while the likes of Oram are injured, must soon bend under the mountain of evidence to the contrary. He is urning the respect of teams around the world: Australia, England and now Pakistan - with a top order as aggressive as McCullum, Ryder and Taylor, the cool head of Elliott is a brilliant balancing measure and insurance policy.

Finally, I must eat my slice and admit my mistake. Months ago I posted a piece about the hold Pakistan has over the Black Caps - particularly in semi-finals - and I admit dismissing the idea of victory in this match in the face of that record. Firstly I was proven dead wrong on that prediction and secondly my stats were not correct. New Zealand in fact beat Pakistan in the 2000 semi-final (the one ODI tournament victory to their name) and I failed to notice this until recently.

I congratulate the team on the fine victory played with the intensity required in finals. Now they must beat their other rival, the Australians led by an in-form Ricky Ponting. It could be a classic, the Black Caps will be the underdogs and that is exactly where they are most comfortable.

Well that's it from here and I hope to see you again
It's good bye for now