the winning captain to elect to bat first. Putting runs on the board in a pressurised environment cannot be underestimated. Giving your bowlers a decent total to defend, gives them the confidence to go out there and execute their skills accurately.
Michael Clarke’s tactics will need to be spot on when Australia take the field. Containing and dismissing Brendon McCullum at the beginning of the innings, being the main objective. Should McCullum get going, he has the ability to take a game away from an opponent in less than 10 overs. Conversely, when New Zealand bowl, getting rid of the dangerous Warner, who much like McCullum possesses immense hitting ability, will be the first objective. Secondly, the Kiwi’s will need to have a plan on how to get rid of in-form Steve Smith. The kid has in the last 12 months, shown what a talented player he is. As a result the Australians have improved drastically and gone from strength to strength. Couple this with the pace and aggression they possess with their trio of lefties, and one has a well-rounded side.
Trent Boult, the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 21 wickets, will be the player that will spearhead the Kiwi assault. He has been superb throughout the tournament and it just may be him to take New Zealand to their maiden title. His opening spell against South Africa in the semi’s proved critical to their victory as he stifled the mercurial South African opening pair. McCullum, and the rest of the Land of the Long White Cloud, will be hoping for more of the same.
Regardless of the outcome, we as neutrals can only hope for a game deserving of a World Cup Final. It has been a successful tournament thus far and a nail-biter, would simply be, a cherry on the top. At the beginning of the tournament, the bookies priced up these two teams as the favourites — they have been proven right.
The question now becomes, who can perform better on the day? I have no doubt that neither team will leave anything out on the MCG. It may simply come down to a special individual performance or a costly error, that sees the trophy remain in Melbourne or make its way across the Tasman. Either way, it’s going to be special!