But he had plenty to be chuffed about, as his 101 off just 54 balls pushed New Zealand to a 47-run victory over Bangladesh, to wrap up the twenty20 series with a game to play.
Only two other New Zealanders, Brendon McCullum (twice) and Martin Guptill, have made T20 international hundreds and Munro dropped briefly into David Warner fist-pump mode at reaching three figures off the 51st ball he had faced.
"At 95 or 96 I thought I might never get this opportunity [again] to get a T20 100. At the end I thought it looked a bit silly but it was all the emotion coming out," the belligerent Auckland lefthander said.
Munro has long been accepted as one of the country’s most destructive batsmen. His 14-ball 50 against Pakistan at Eden Park a year ago is the second-fastest behind only Yuvraj Singh’s 12-ball effort against England 10 years ago.
On Boxing Day, there was a rapid 87 in the opening one-day international in Christchurch and sundry other demonstrations of his ability to take attacks apart. Then again, he got a duck at Napier last Tuesday. Munro knows the vagaries of the short-form game and appreciates that when it is your day, cash in, and preferably big time.
"Today was one of those days. The first ball came out of the middle and I took it from there. You try to be aggressive early and build that strike rate and keep going," he said.
He shared a 123-run stand for the fourth wicket with Tom Bruce, playing just his second game for the Black Caps, in 11.1 overs, to pull the home side from 48 for three to 195 for seven, well beyond Bangladesh’s reach.
Bruce’s muscular methods served him well. A tall man with a keen eye, he and Munro bounced off each other impressively. Bruce’s unbeaten 59 took only 39 balls.
The pair tore Bangladesh’s attack apart. At one point in the 12th and 13th overs, Munro — who hit seven of the 14 sixes struck yesterday — scored 39 runs in nine deliveries.
The Black Caps finished five runs shy of passing 200 for the fifth time in T20 internationals. Munro’s ton means New Zealand has scored more of them than any other country, one more than Australia, India, South Africa and the West Indies.
Yesterday was the first time Munro and Bruce had batted together. It could be called a promising start.
"I’ve seen him [Bruce] play those sort of knocks for the Stags [Central Districts] against the Auckland Aces."
Munro pointed out his good score in the opening ODI came as part of a 158-run stand with Tom Latham. Tom Bruce clicked with him yesterday.
"I’m batting pretty well with the Toms, so they can keep coming," he quipped.
Once Bangladesh lost its first three wickets for 36, to some plain dumb cricket — a sloppy run out and two poor examples of shot selection — it was cooked. A breezy 68-run stand between Sabbir Rahman and Soumya Sarkar was the standout exception.
It has one last chance, on the same ground tomorrow, to take something tangible from the series, before the tests begin.
Luke Ronchi will not be there. The New Zealand wicketkeeper injured a groin muscle during Bangladesh’s innings.
- David Leggat
