New Blood Carries the day

Pinch me, I must be dreaming! NZ go two up by virtue of that six-wicket win at MCG. "Unthinkable" is a word that comes to mind - and it was not the senior players alone who stepped up. Add to that the moral victory of Ricky Ponting having to cut short his rest, and it was a memorable game.

As if to assert last Sunday's victory in Perth was no flash in the pan, NZ turned in an overall more polished performance at the MCG. The slow wicket was hardly ideal for an Australian team looking to blast itself out of a rut, and the kiwis capitalised perfectly. I was worried that the composition of their XI, with five bowlers, is rather unbalanced but unlike in Perth they were able to keep wickets in hand. And this is a New Zealand side missing Jesse Ryder, Scott Styris and Jacob Oram. Fine, Australia in turn are missing Brett Lee, Andrew Symonds, Shane Watson, Stuart Clark and a few others. But the kiwis supposedly have a much weaker second string compared to the bottomless reservoir of state talent that the Aussies keep reminding the rest of the cricketing world about.

Best of all, it was the youngsters who largely made the 2-0 lead possible. Okay, so Grant Elliott (29 years old), Neil Broom (25) and Iain O'Brien (32) are defintiely not 'young', but in terms of experience they have a combined total of 20 caps between them. The Australia of 2007 might have been a tough baptism for such players, but I suppose the Perth victory demonstrates what a little self belief can do. O'Brien was sensational with his ability to fire yorkers in the 140s at will in the death overs - Michael Clarke's bruised toe was testament to that. For those who've observed NZ limited overs bowling over the years, this was something extraordinary. As for Grant Elliott, I didn't believe he could successfully make the transition to number five, but he proved me and a thousand others wrong. Actually, he is just the sort of player the middle order side needs - not too flashy, but someone who gets the scoreboard moving and can absorb pressure. Neil Broom appears to be more of a biffer, but his two short innings so far in the series have been vital contributions. At Perth he was forced to consolidate, but here he showed he is just as capable using the long handle (yes, I know the joke's been done to death).

The established players, namely Vettori, Mills, McCullum and Taylor have also done their bit but I'd like to see McCullum or Taylor push on to get a really big score (though Taylor did shepherd the chase at the WACA). When you've got the Aussies down you don't want to allow them any headway back into the series. At the moment, the teams appear to be even as far as bowling resources are concerned. But although Australia look the better batting side on paper, they've never really got going.

Of course, the job is not yet over, NZ still have to win at least one of the remaining three games and can expect an Aussie backlash. Ricky Ponting's return - apart from the obvious boost to the Aussie lineup - is an acknowledgment that the Aussies take the Chappell Hadlee Trophy more seriously now.