Maverick Glenn Phillips on his secret to recent successes with bat after yet another key knock in Pakistan.
Maverick Glenn Phillips has been on a roll recently.
Glenn Phillips has played four ODIs since arriving in Pakistan a few weeks ago, amassed 215 runs off 162 balls, and been removed just once. On a challenging wicket where scoring runs was difficult, particularly in the early going, Phillips hammered 61 from 39 to put his team far above 300 before being dismissed today in New Zealand’s Champions Trophy opening against the hosts.
What’s his secret? “I’m just really clear at the moment, I’m seeing the ball really well and I guess being still at the point of contact and I think that goes a long way in being able to be a hitter,” Phillips said after New Zealand’s 60-run win in Karachi. “I haven’t always got it right in the past, but I’ve got a little bit of a feel for it for the moment.”
In the previous tri-series against South Africa and Pakistan, which acted as the last preparation for the Champions Trophy, he scored 106 not out, 28 not out, and 20 not out. With New Zealand’s run rate at that point averaging around five to the over, he joined a composed Tom Latham today at 191 for 4 in the 38th over. New Zealand finished with 113 from the final 10 overs (41-50) of a Champions Trophy innings, the second-highest total by any team. The two proceeded to hammer 125 from 74.
What was it that held batters back before this partnership? “I think we’ve played a different pitch and it’s played a different way every time we’ve been here [Karachi].
“The pacers I think were definitely harder to play in the day when the ball was going up and down a lot. The way Matt Henry and Will O’Rourke bowled [in the chase], it was a testament to how good they did but I think during the day the way the Pakistan boys bowled, especially at the top, made it quite tough for us to get away early on.
“I think we’ve been really adaptable to different styles of pitches, and it was nice to see some turn out there in the evening.”
Before they travel to Dubai to play India on March 2, New Zealand’s next match is against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi on February 24. To go to the semi-finals and beyond, they will need to continue to adjust for some time, but this was a good beginning.