Cricket World Cup 2023: Australia survive late scare to beat New Zealand by five runs in thriller

Australia survived a late scare to beat New Zealand by five runs in a Cricket World Cup match for the ages in Dharamsala.

In a thrilling battle between two titans of the sport, Australia set a target of 389 and looked set for a comfortable victory when Rachin Ravindra fell, leaving New Zealand needing 96 runs from 58 balls.

But a heroic effort from Jimmy Neesham sent the contest all the way to the final over. Needing 19 runs from six was a tall order but hopes of an incredible comeback were raised when Mitchell Starc bowled five wides with the second ball.

Neesham’s charge was eventually halted on 58 with the penultimate delivery of the match, and when Lockie Ferguson couldn’t hit a six with the final ball, the Australians could celebrate an epic victory.

"That was awesome," Australia captain Pat Cummins said. "Sometimes I have to remember I'm out in the field, not a spectator. A fantastic game, they kept coming at us.

"That was a good wicket. In patches we bowled really well, sometimes we gave too much width away. Some really good partnerships, it was tough to get into them.

"We'll enjoy this one and get stuck in on the back end."

Australia were put in to bat first and were bowled all out for 388 after a late capitulation at the bottom of the order.

Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa and Josh Hazlewood combined for just one run, but the damage had been done early on.

David Warner and Travis Head led from the front, combining for 175 before the Black Caps picked up their first wicket when Warner was caught and bowled by Glenn Phillips for 81.

Head powered on to get his century but was dismissed on 109 by Phillips in the 24th over.

There were also decent contributions from Mitchell Marsh (36), Glenn Maxwell (41), Josh Inglis (38) and Pat Cummins (37) as the Aussies set a lofty target for the Kiwis to chase.

For all Zampa and Hazelwood struggled with the bat, they were instrumental with the ball for Australia.

Openers Devon Conway and Will Young were both caught by Starc and bowled by Hazlewood as New Zealand fell to 72-2, before Zampa removed Daryl Mitchell and Tom Latham.

Ravindra ensured New Zealand had a chance of pulling off an unlikely victory, scoring 116 runs from 89 balls before he was caught by Marnus Labuschagne just shy of the boundary. The Aussies knew the significance of that wicket that left the Kiwis needing 96 runs from 58 balls to win.

Forced to open the shoulders, Mitchell Santner and Matt Henry were the next to go, before Neesham breathed fresh life into the match.

His 58 from 39 balls featured three fours, three sixes and shed-loads of drama. It eventually came to an end when he was run out going for an ambitious but necessary two with the game’s penultimate ball as the Aussies hung on.

With 771 runs scored, it was the highest-scoring game in Cricket World Cup history.

The result leaves New Zealand and Australia third and fourth respectively, separated only by net run rate as the battle for the semi-finals hots up.

New Zealand face South Africa next, while Australia will hope to deepen England’s woes when the familiar foes square off next Saturday.

Netherlands sealed their second World Cup win after beating Bangladesh by 87 runs in Kolkata.

Paul van Meekeren and captain Scott Edwards produced two telling contributions after taking 4-23 and scoring 68 runs respectively in this landmark victory.

Edwards set the tone in a solid innings for the Dutch with a solid total of 229, which Bangladesh never really looked like challenging.

Mehidy Miraz scored a respectable 35, before being caught by Edwards off the bowling of Bas de Leede.

Van Meeken's bowling would ensure good progress was made through Bangladesh's mid order, as Najmul Shanto (9), Shakib Al Hasan (5) and Mushfiqur Rahim (1) were all dispatched.

Mahmudullah and Mahedi Hasan offered some resistance with totals of 20 and 17 respectively. However, it only prolonged the inevitable demise of the Bangladesh order.

Mahmudullah was caught by Aryan Dutt off the bowling of De Leede, before the latter run out Hasan.

Taskin Ahmed was the last man to go after being caught by De Leede from Van Meekeren's delivery, and secured a comprehensive victory with 46 balls remaining.

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