Wellington rebounded from a poor start to make it through to the twenty20 final where it will face Central Districts at Pukekura Park this afternoon. Cricket writer Adrian Seconi looks at what might influence the outcome.
FORM
Central Districts has been the most consistent team in the tournament and got to the final with seven wins from nine complete games. Two of those seven wins were against Wellington and the most recent encounter was a comfortable six-wicket win at the Basin Reserve on Boxing Day.
Wellington, by contrast, had a bumpy ride, losing its first four games. But back-to-back wins against Auckland midway through the round robin breathed life into its campaign. It secured a place in the playoffs courtesy of a super over win against Otago and then beat Canterbury in the preliminary final in a tense game decided in the last over.
EXPERIENCE
If you really can’t beat experience, then Wellington should win in a canter. Jeetan Patel (169), Hamish Marshall (139) and Grant Elliott (111) have all played more than 100 twenty20 games, while Luke Woodcock (93), Michael Papps (86) and Brent Arnel (83) have amassed a few games as well.
There is plenty of cricket savvy in that group but Central Districts import Mahela Jayawardene has them all trumped. The former Sri Lankan international has played 218 T20 games — 55 of them internationals. He is the class player in either side and the 39-year-old could have a big influence on the outcome of the match.
RUNS, RUNS, RUNS
There will be plenty of them. Pukekura Park is one of the smaller venues around the country and chances are the winner will need to score 200-plus. Last month Otago and Central Districts combined to score 497 runs — the highest match aggregate ever recorded.
The square boundaries are impossible to defend and the straight boundaries are not much of a challenge either. But while it is a hard ground to defend, all four games at the venue this season have been won by the team batting first.
KEY PLAYERS
It is the batsmen who will probably have the biggest influence on the game and the home team has two of the best — Jesse Ryder and Jayawardene.
Ryder has been injured and has only played two games. But with a career strike rate of 147.29, he looms large as a menacing threat. Jayawardene has already scored a century at the venue this season and is the competition’s second-highest scorer, with 367 runs at a strike rate close to 180. Wellington will value his wicket more than any other.
The Firebirds will work in pairs. The opening partnership between Marshall and Papps is critical. They have scored nearly 600 runs between them.
Wellington will also look to squeeze Central with the ball through Patel and Elliott. They will probably bowl in tandem and look to rattle through the overs as cheaply and quickly as possible.
Twenty20 final
Central Districts v Wellington
Pukekura Park, today, 4.10pm
Central Districts: George Worker, Mahela Jayawardene, Jesse Ryder, Will Young, Dane Cleaver, Josh Clarkson, Marty Kain, Ryan McCone, Seth Rance, Blair Tickner, Ajaz Patel, Narvin Patel, Ben Smith.
Wellington: Michael Papps, Hamish Marshall (captain), Tom Blundell, Grant Elliott, Michael Pollard, Matt Taylor, Luke Woodcock, Anurag Verma, Jeetan Patel, Hamish Bennett, Brent Arnel, Stephen Murdoch, Peter Younghusband.
