Fleming: We Were Poor

E-mail this Article

Print this Article

Subscribe to RSS Feed

Fleming - unhappy with Blac Caps' display.

Stephen Fleming admitted his New Zealand side simply put in a poor performance and could never get started in the six-wicket World Cup defeat by Sri Lanka.

The Kiwis mustered 219 for seven on the back of Scott Styris' fourth one-day international hundred - but it proved nowhere near enough as half-centuries from Sanath Jayasuriya (64) and Kumar Sangakkara (69no) saw Sri Lanka home with almost five overs to spare.

The result means New Zealand are joined on eight Super Eight points by Sri Lanka, alongside table-toppers Australia.

"It was a poor performance. It was just a day when we couldn't get anything going," said Fleming, whose decision to bat first was a marginal one.

"The whole way through, particularly with our batting, they just stunted any momentum we had."

The Kiwis were four for two in the third over - thanks to man-of-the-match Chaminda Vaas (three for 33) - and then faltered again to 154 for seven.

Only Styris' 111 not out salvaged a total of any substance.

"Pete Fulton's wicket, Jacob Oram's wicket - every time we got near to parity we just lost wickets - against Sri Lanka who probably have one of the best attacks in the World Cup," Fleming added.

"It was a tough day decision-wise to try to get things right.

"We opted to bat first, get a score on the board and hope it would get lower and slower."

Styris blamed his team's inability to post a decent target for their defeat.

"It was disappointing in the end," he said.

"We didn't get enough runs and lost wickets all the way through - it wasn't to be."

Asked for the key to success on the Grenada pitch, he added: "Probably not thrashing at the ball - and at times we did that. To be fair, they are a good bowling unit on these wickets."

Despite New Zealand's now slightly more vulnerable situation, Styris remains confident of semi-final qualification.

"We have to be positive - we are still in a good position," he said. "If we can take lessons from today we should be fine."

Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene had more to smile about.

"We got early wickets, and Vaasy bowled brilliantly," he said.

"Then Murali took wickets in the middle, and we never let them get loose.

"I thought 250-260 probably would have been a tough run chase on that wicket."