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Lockie Ferguson's spell was the talk of the town as New Zealand secured a comfortable victory against Papua New Guinea in their final T20 World Cup group stage match. Played at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba on Monday, June 17, this was a dead rubber for both teams, as New Zealand had already been eliminated.
Lockie Ferguson's record spell breaks PNG's back
Lockie Ferguson's bowling was a masterclass in control. He delivered four immaculate overs, not conceding a single run, and became the first bowler in T20 World Cup history to achieve this feat. More remarkably, he became only the second bowler in all men's T20 Internationals to bowl four maidens in a single match. His efforts with the ball were well supported by his teammates. Ferguson picked up three wickets as well, restricting Papua New Guinea to a paltry 78 runs on a challenging pitch with uneven bounce.
Easy-peasy run chase for Kiwis
In reply, New Zealand lost their opener Finn Allen early, but a solid knock of 35 runs from Devon Conway steadied the ship. They chased down the target comfortably, losing just three wickets and with nearly eight overs to spare, to secure a seven-wicket victory.
This win, however, wasn't enough to change their fate. New Zealand finished third in Group C, behind Afghanistan and co-hosts West Indies, who had already booked their spots in the Super 8 stage even before their final group match.
Rain may have dampened the mood before the start, with both teams already out of contention for the next stage. However, Lockie Ferguson ensured this final group stage match between New Zealand and Papua New Guinea wouldn't be forgotten. Ferguson's fiery pace, consistently exceeding 90mph, proved too much for the inexperienced PNG batting lineup. He wasted no time, dismissing PNG skipper Assad Vala on the very first ball, caught by Daryl Mitchell at wide slip. Later, he trapped Charles Amini lbw on review and went on to bowl Chad Soper. While PNG managed two leg byes off the third ball of Ferguson's final over, he ultimately finished with an incredible spell of 4-4-0-3, matching the record of four maidens in a T20I previously held by Canada's Saad Bin Zafar.
Left-arm pacer Trent Boult, potentially playing his last game for New Zealand, also chipped in with two wickets for just 14 runs. Perhaps due to the uneven bounce of the pitch, New Zealand's chase was cautious. They lost opener Finn Allen to a low bouncer, under-edging behind, and then Rachin Ravindra, who holed out on the leg side, both victims of Kabua Morea's left-arm medium pace. Despite losing a few wickets, Devon Conway provided some excitement with three sixes before being trapped lbw by Semo Kamea due to the unpredictable bounce. This left the experienced duo of Kane Williamson and Daryl Mitchell to comfortably see New Zealand over the line by seven wickets with almost eight overs remaining.
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