On the drive back to the hotel, after setting a world record partnership with his good mate Grant Elliott, Luke Ronchi was asked why he came back to New Zealand to live.
“For today,” said the 33-year-old with a smile, who brought up his maiden ODI in emphatic style.
The wicket-keeper batsman, who spent many years living and playing cricket in Perth, was the talking point yesterday when he played the innings of his life – 170 not out from only 99 balls.
He combined beautifully with Wellington Firebirds team-mate Elliott (104* off 96 balls) to record a world record partnership of 267 runs for the sixth wicket.
Ronchi (170*) and Elliott (104*) surpassed the record for the sixth wicket partnership against all countries when they edged past the 165 set by Craig McMillan and Brendon McCullum against Australia in Hamilton in 2006/07.
They weren’t finished there as they went on to break the world record for the highest partnership for the sixth wicket beating Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka) and MS Dhoni’s (India) effort of 218 for the Asia XI against the Africa XI in Chennai in 2007.
When fronting the press, Elliott was unsure what world records they had broken.
“I don’t know what the world record is,” said the likeable 35-year-old. “We’ll probably share a beer tonight and it will be great to look at the world record and be proud that it has contributed to a team win which is the most important thing.”
The BLACKCAPS won by 108 runs to take a 3-1 lead in the ANZ ODI Series and are in red-hot form in their home conditions leading into the ICC World Cup.
“It was pretty fun wasn’t it?” asked Elliott. “It was fun to be out there with Ronchs. I was just trying to get the strike off him, but he was hitting fours and sixes at the time. I really enjoyed watching the innings and it was really nice to have a fellow Wellingtonian to celebrate with me and obviously celebrate his first 100.”
The pair came together when the BLACKCAPS were in trouble. They were 93-5 after the Sri Lankans took advantage of the early bowler friendly conditions at University Oval.
“When we first started off the innings we sort of said ‘we will just to try to bat for a while and get through that period where the ball was still doing a bit’. But after that we were pretty relaxed about the whole situation and enjoyed the position we were in really. Both of us were scoring quite freely and to put up a partnership like we did was a lot of fun. A lot of fun.”
Elliott, who played the anchoring role, added: “We were pretty lucky to avoid the first 12 overs it looked pretty spicy out there.”
“I was very fortunate with the way he was playing that I could just rotate the strike and build on the foundation so we were in a position to strike. We were fortunate to get into that position where we could say: ‘Ok let’s both have a go now.’ Even though it seemed like Ronchs was going from ball one anyway.”
Ronchi said he noticed the Sri Lankan’s heads drop when they started to hit them all around the park and he knew then that they had the ascendancy.
“Not early on but there was a point there where you could see they were trying different plans and different things and I certainly felt during that period we were on top and could make the most of that situation. The way it worked out was good.”
Elliott, who had a patient 44 in the 4th ANZ ODI in Nelson, was pleased to continue his form with the bat and repay the faith the selectors have shown in him.
“I always knew I had it in me. It was just nice to contribute to a win. I have a role in the team and I want to perform that role to the best of my ability and hopefully I did that today. There is a great environment in this team to be able to do that. The guys are all behind each other and we are very team focused.”
The pair was looking forward to some downtime today after spending most of the 5th ANZ ODI in the thick of the action. Ronchi, in particular, had weary legs heading into the hotel.
“The batting side wasn’t a problem, but it was the keeping when you have to get out there and squat for 50 overs and the legs start barking a bit and the calves cramp up. I will take it pretty easy [today].”
The sixth ODI in the ANZ International Series is on tomorrow at the University Oval in Dunedin from 11am with the BLACKCAPS looking to win the series.
