Marnus Labuschagne’s gritty 56 off 52 saw Australia reach a modest total by the end of allotted 50 overs.
Australia's batsman Marnus Labuschagne plays a shot. (Photo by Saeed KHAN / AFP)
Riding on 67 and 60 from David Warner and Aaron Finch, respectively, Australia posted a total of 258/7 in the first ODI of the three-match series against New Zealand at Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Friday.
Earlier, Australia skipper Finch won the toss and opted to bat first against the Proteas.
Warner and Finch started all guns blazing and almost took the match away with a 124-run stand in 24.1 overs between them for the opening wicket. However, once Warner fell, the Australian camp stumbled as Finch too joined the southpaw.
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Wickets fell in regular intervals for Australia and South Africa came back into the game with great thrust.
Marnus Labuschagne’s gritty 56 off 52 saw Australia reach a modest total by the end of allotted 50 overs.
Ish Sodhi was the pick of the bowlers for New Zealand with the figures of 3 for 51 while Mitchell Santner and Lockie Ferguson claimed two wickets apiece.
In the wake of the novel coronavirus, Cricket Australia has announced that Australia’s ongoing three-match ODI series against New Zealand will be played in front of empty stands. As a result, the ongoing first ODI between the two sides has no spectators at the SCG.
Notably, Australia pacer Kane Richardson has been quarantined after reporting a mild sore throat on Thursday night. As a result, the right-arm fast bowler has been ruled out of the ongoing match.
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