New Zealand thrash England by nine wickets in World Cup opener

A thrilling matchup similar to the 2019 World Cup final at Lord's, where England defeated New Zealand on a boundary count, was expected.

Devon Conway (152 not out) and teenage Rachin Ravindra (123 not out) made the World Cup opener a one-sided affair, though, and helped New Zealand thrash England by nine wickets on Tuesday at the Motera in Ahmedabad, which had a nearly empty appearance.

The twin centurions assisted New Zealand in chasing down a 283-run mark in just 36.2 overs by launching a barrage of proper cricketing shots on all sides of the field. That emphasizes even more the power they batted with.

Yes, England missed Ben Stokes' batting contribution since he was absent. The defending champions had nearly all of their regular ODI bowlers, several of whom were instrumental in their victory four years prior. However, none of these bowlers could match the dominant strategy of the left-handed combination from New Zealand.

In any case, Conway's development had made him an essential member of the Black Caps' batting lineup. In the absence of regular skipper Kane Williamson, his was the crucial wicket that England needed early after some of their batsmen, including top scorer Joe Root (77), made poor shot choices that reduced them to 282/9 after being put in.

The ferocity and flamboyance of spinning all-rounder Ravindra, who, while making his first century, also became New Zealand's youngest Cup centurion at age 23, seemed to catch England off guard instead.

In the second over of their run chase, New Zealand had already lost their other opener, Will Young, with just 10 on the board. But Ravindra, who was alert from the start, not only engaged the English bowlers but also didn't waste even a single inch of the available width.

Ravindra did, in fact, hit more aerial shots than Conway did, but there wasn't much flare in the youngster's 96-ball innings, which included 11 boundaries and five sixes.

The performances of left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner (2/37) and pacer Matt Henry (3/48), which previously hampered the progress of the potent English batting line-up, were equally important.