Vettori stars as ND put away Wellington under lights

A one-day best of 89 by Daniel Vettori was the foundation of a 43-run State Shield victory for Northern Districts over Wellington at Westpac Park in Hamilton today.

Vettori also demonstrated that his bowling skills have not suffered from their recent lack of use. He took two for 29 from 10 overs.

Damp conditions and abysmal Indian batting in the Tests and One-Day Internationals have meant that Vettori has had few opportunities with either bat or ball at international level this season. He was sent back for a rare domestic appearance not so much to recover his form as to discover it.

With the bat, he was compelling. As usual, he took every opportunity to score square of the wicket and was harsh on anything that strayed towards the leg stump. Resuming his former role as one-day opener for ND, Vettori put on 168 with James Marshall. It was an ND one-day record for the first wicket, bettering the 116 by Bryan Young and Michael Parlane against Auckland in 1996/97.

When Vettori reached his 50 all but nine of his runs had come in boundaries, including a six over long leg off Mayu Pasupati. He relied more on working the ball around the field for the rest of his innings as he compiled a career-best 89 from 115 balls with 11 fours and one six.

Marshall benefited from the presence of an in-form batsman at the other end, something that has been in short supply among the ND line-up this season. He made 60 from 93 balls, more than his other four State Shield innings this season put together. As the innings progressed he became more relaxed and adventurous, rediscovering his timing to hit six boundaries.

The remainder of the ND line-up did not fare so well. Only 103 were added after Marshall's dismissal in the 32nd over. The remaining nine ND batsmen made only 68 between them, a continuing worry for coach Bruce Blair.

The bowling of Matthew Walker (one for 41), Mark Gillespie (one for 42) and Paul Hitchcock (two for 44) in the later stages was the best of the innings, with the Westpac Park pitch rewarding accuracy with movement and bounce. However, it was not the minefield that it appeared during the recent Test match and a good batting track is expected for next week's One-Day International at the ground.

Ash Turner had a Jekyll and Hyde day with the ball. After two expensive spells earlier in the innings, he returned to take the first three ND wickets, including those of Parlane and Matthew Hart in his sixth over. But he also bowled successive wides that went to the boundary, a major contribution to the 55 extras (including 31 wides - 20 attributable to Turner alone) that were ND's third-highest scorer.

Wellington were positive from the outset of their chase. Their batsmen hit five more boundaries than ND's, with most looking in some sort of form.

It was the regular loss of wickets that undermined them. Only during a stand of 70 for the third wicket between Neal Parlane and Richard Jones did Wellington look likely winners. The partnership defied the conventions of building a one-day total by relying on boundaries. Seven out of eight scoring shots were fours in one three-over spell.

Cast aside by ND, Parlane was a man with something to prove. Some of the best shots of the match were among his eight boundaries.

It was, almost inevitably, the introduction of Vettori into the attack that decided the result. Only nine runs came from his first five overs as he settled into a probing rhythm from the start. The required run rate increased and there was nothing that Wellington could do about it.

Walker completed a good all-round performance with a muscular and entertaining run-a-ball 58 that deprived ND of a bonus point, but it was too little, too late.

Mark Orchard took his first wickets at this level, finishing with two for 40. Joseph Yovich took four wickets, but at the cost of 50 runs in eight overs. He still has directional problems. Today his wide tally was 12.

ND are back in the hunt at the head of the State Shield table with 13 points, one short of Wellington and Otago. The State Shield resumes on January 17 when Auckland visit Wellington and ND host Central Districts.