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Australia face tough task against NZ
by CricketArchive Staff Reporter


Player:RT Ponting
Event:ICC Champions Trophy 2009/10

DateLine: 5th October 2009

 

Chasing a second successive title, Australia face a tricky task against the Black Caps in the Champions Trophy final.

 

Australians may have been in good form in the tournament coming at the backdrop of a 6-1 ODI series victory against England but New Zealand will also not let a rare chance of an ICC event win go by so easily.

 

The Aussies start favourites considering the form of their batting, but their bowling stands nowhere close close to what they were two years back.

 

Skipper Ponting has led by example and has become the most prolific batsman in Champions Trophy with 287 runs at an average of nearly 96.

 

Shane Watson's return to form at the top order adds zing to their batting and this will surely be at the top of the mind of the Kiwis.

 

Their bowling consists of Peter Siddle, comeback-man Brett Lee, Watson and Mitchell Johnson, all of whom can be devastating for any batting attack.

 

"We are playing at a level which would win us the big games. We look to play best cricket when it matters. We are peaking at the right time for the finals," Ponting said.

 

New Zealand, start underdogs as always, having faltered eight times in the semifinals of 50-over ICC events.

 

This time though the semi-final jinx has been broken and Vettori's men would be hungry for a rare title.

 

The Black Caps have been hit by injuries and now the team is looking forward to mostly all-rounders for a upset in the final.

 

Skipper Daniel Vettori is determined to see that his side does not lose a chance to win a major tournament, given their track record as semifinal chokers.

 

"There is a real ambition in the side. There's belief and desire to win tournament instead of just ending up as semifinalists," he said.

 

The pitch looks like a flat batting track and this will surely make the Kiwis miss explosive opener Jesse Ryder.

 

In the batting department, Ryder's absence need to be made up by Brendon McCullum, Martin Guptill and Ross Taylor alongside a few others.

 

The skipper has been doing extremely well with both the bat and the ball and he can be counted as a major trump card for his side today.

 

On the bowling front, with support from Kyle Mills and James Franklin at the other end, ICL-returnee Shane Bond is slow and steadily coming back to his usual hot form sending down fast stuffs.

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