The Sydney Cricket Ground saw a spectacle on Saturday, October 29, courtesy of New Zealand batter Glenn Phillips’s century. He came to the crease when Sri Lanka reduced the Kiwis to 7-2. He faced 64 balls and scored 104 at a strike rate of 162.5. This knock included ten fours and four maximums.
He was dropped during the early stage of his innings by Pathum Nissanka, and after that, he never looked back. Glenn Phillips capitalised on his opportunity and single-handedly helped his team score 167-7.
This is his second century in this format, and he becomes the only middle-order player in the history of this tournament to score a century. All the remaining centuries were scored by batters in the upper order (1 to 3). He is the second Kiwi after Brendon McCullum to score a century in the T20 World Cup.
Let’s look at some of the Twitter reactions to Glenn Phillips’s innings today:
Daryl Mitchell on Glenn Phillips: "That was unbelievable.
“To do it on a surface like that, which was challenging at times, I haven’t seen many better T20 knocks under that sort of pressure.”
More on @newscomauHQ: https://t.co/4tZqIrqVhX
📸 Getty Images #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/7s9rhPhXil
— Nic Savage (@nic_savage1) October 29, 2022
Newzealand is most underrated team. especially in World cups. Brilliant knock by @glennphillips under pressure 👏👏 #NZvsSL🏏 #T20WorldCup2022 pic.twitter.com/ip7wiJ8XF5
— Yash Banait (@YashBanait7) October 29, 2022
Glenn Phillips hit 10 fours and 4 sixes.
All the other batters hit 2 fours and 1 six combined. Phenomenal knock 👏🏽 #NZvSL #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/uTvN3XMzVB— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) October 29, 2022
Hundred for Glenn Phillips, what a knock it has been, New Zealand was down & out with 15 for 3 from 4 overs and he completed 102* from 61 balls.
Take a bow, Glenn Phillips. pic.twitter.com/XWa3YG0KhL
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) October 29, 2022
Hundred by Glenn Phillips in 61 balls – what a superb innings by Phillips. New Zealand were 15/3 at one stage, but he kept on and smashed a hundred. pic.twitter.com/UQv3VBaN7i
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) October 29, 2022
That is terrific from Glenn Phillips. 103 out of 152 runs. He has grown into an amazing batter. Can’t wait to see what he does in the fields tonight.
— Ian Raphael Bishop (@irbishi) October 29, 2022
Glenn Phillips becomes first New Zealander to score a 100 in a men 's ICC event in Australia pic.twitter.com/UmgMh6Lgyw
— Arnav Singh (@Arnavv43) October 29, 2022
Glenn Phillips in T20Is in 2022:
•Innings – 14
•Runs – 565
•Average – 51.36
•Strike rate – 154.79
•50s/100s – 4/1 pic.twitter.com/D0yaWilSQ6— CricketMAN2 (@ImTanujSingh) October 29, 2022
WHAT AN INNINGS AND A 💯 . 🥶🌟 GLEN PHILLIPS .#glennphillips#T20WorldCup #IPL2023 #ELONMUSK pic.twitter.com/WBZw5bBEnH
— Shailesh Kuril (@Shaileshkuril31) October 29, 2022
Glenn Phillips in T20 World Cup 2022:
•Played outstanding innings.
•Takes incredible catches.
•Shows how to play cricket in spirit.In just 2 matches, Glenn Phillips shows everything!! pic.twitter.com/BZwukFfm7T
— CricketMAN2 (@ImTanujSingh) October 29, 2022
A comprehensive win for @BLACKCAPS by 65 runs, 2nd & the biggest win over Sri Lanka in #T20WorldCup . A phillips – Mitchell stand of 84 runs lifted NZ from 15/3 to 167. With the ball everyone chipped in wkts, led by Boult 4/13. Glenn Phillips named POTM for his match winning 💯👏 pic.twitter.com/qMZEFF8nr4
— Ayesha Rootfied (@JoeRoot66Fan) October 29, 2022
The dropped catch by Nisshanka proved to be costly for them in the context of the game. Sri Lanka lost this encounter by 65 runs. None of the batters apart from Bhanuka Rajapakse looked comfortable on the crease.
In the bowling department, Trent Boult was seen leading the charge by picking up four scalps for the team in his quota of overs. Both the spinners Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner picked up two wickets each.
New Zealand inch closer to T20 World Cup semi-finals
This game again reinforced the fact that how catches win you matches and the importance of good fielding in this format. What if the catch of Glenn Phillips was taken the result would have significantly looked different for Sri Lanka.
With this win, New Zealand is a step closer to qualifying for the semi-finals in Australia. They are comfortably sitting on the top of the table in Group 1 which is also known as the group of death.
New Zealand will next be seen facing England on Tuesday, November 1, at the Gabba, Brisbane.
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