6 Best ODI matches of the year 2015

Cricket remained to be at its pinnacle best in the year 2015 with the much awaited ICC World Cup 2015 taking the center of attraction this year. With a couple of months of superlative action, the cricket fans got absolute treats during the tournament with some keenly contested games. The action continued after the world cup with bilateral series taking place between various teams. South Africa mastered the art of scoring in excess of 400 runs in an innings with 4 scores of 400 plus run with 439 against West Indies being their highest. Here we pick the 6 Best ODI matches of the year 2015: 6. India v South Africa – 1st ODI at Kanpur: India v South Africa 1st ODI, Kanpur. (Photo Source: BCCI) Two of the most popular teams in the world locked horns in the 5-match bilateral ODI series. The action kick-started at Kanpur when the 1st ODI was lit up with centuries from AB de Villiers and Rohit Sharma. Opting to bat first, South Africa posted 303/5 in their 50 overs. Skipper AB de Villiers scored a brilliant 73-ball century, completing his century on the last ball of the innings with a six while Faf du Plessis scored 62. The Indian chase saw Dhawan going early for 23 but then Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane put on 149 runs for the 2nd wicket and India seemed to be cruising towards the victory. Rahane was dismissed for 60 while Sharma continued. Rohit completed his century in 98 balls and brought up his 150 in 132 balls. India were 269/3 in 46 overs, needing 35 of 24 balls when Rohit was dismissed by Imran Tahir. Wickets kept tumbling then and India needed 11 of the last over with Dhoni at the strike. But he was dismissed by Rabada, who emerged as new found hero and South Africa won the match by 5 runs. Also Read – Top 10 Teams with most ODI wins in 2015 5. Bangladesh v England – ICC World Cup (Group Stages): Bangladesh team celebration after winning against England. (© Getty Images) The group stage match saw the upset of the World Cup 2015 when Bangladesh thumped England by 15 runs at Adelaide. The winner of the match was guaranteed a place in the quarterfinals while the loser had to exit the World Cup. Batting first, Bangladesh put on 275/7; Mahmadullah became the first batsman from Bangladesh to score a World Cup century hitting 138-ball 103 and Mushfiqur Rahim contributing 89 from 77 balls. The Chase looked set as Ian Bell scored a well-complied 63 off 82 balls and Joe Root scoring 29 while England were 121/2 in 26 overs going at close to 6 runs an over. Rubel Hossain then picked up Bell and Morgan in the same over to bring back the momentum. Jos Butler scored 52-ball 65, but Taskin Ahmed removed him in the 46th over just when England looked to be in the driver’s seat again. Chris Jordan was run-out and England were 8 down. Hossain returned to pick up the last two wickets and bowl England out for 260 in 48.3 overs giving Bangladesh a 15-run win. 4. New Zealand v England – 4th ODI at Nottingham: (© Getty Images) The touring New Zealand side led the 5-match series 2-1 prior to the 4th ODI and looked set to seal the series at Nottingham. But a dramatic run chase saw England level the series 2-2 after the match. Opting to bat, the Kiwis put on a mammoth 349/7 in their 50 overs riding on half-centuries from Martin Guptill (53), Kane Williamson (90) and Grant Elliot (55). England had a blazing start to the run chase with 100 runs on the board within 11 overs of play. Alex Hales wreaked havoc at the opening slot with a 38-ball 67. Joe Root and Eoin Morgan then put on 198 for the 3rd wicket to steer England close to the victory. Morgan hit 113 in 82 balls, hitting 5 sixes, before being dismissed by Southee in the 40th over. Root remained unbeaten on 106 from 97 balls to see England chase down 350 in just 44 overs. 3. Afghanistan v Scotland – ICC World Cup (Group Stages): Afghanistan v Scotland World Cup 2015. (Photo Source: AFP) The fight might have been between the associates, but the match was an epic one. Scotland were playing in the World Cup after a significant break while it was Afghanistan’s maiden World Cup appearance. Chasing 211 set by Scotland, Afghanistan were reduced to 97 for 7, with Richie Berrington, who finished with figures of 4/40, doing most of the damage. Samiullah Shenwari then rose to the big stage and rallied Dawlat Zadran and Hassan around him to get close to the target. Shenwari fell for 96, just short of a hundred, having batted out 147 balls. But Hassan and Shapoor ensured that history was created with just three balls remaining. Earlier in the day, Shapoor Zadran (4/38) and Dawlat (3/29) had bowled Scotland out for 210 in 50 overs, and the game got so close because every player was willing to fight it out till the end. The sights of Afghanistan players running on the field, having registered their maiden World Cup win was an absolute delight to watch. 2. New Zealand v South Africa – ICC World Cup Semi-final: (© Getty Images) The stage was set for the semi-finals as two of the chokers of ICC tournaments clashed in the first semi-final of ICC World Cup 2015. One team that had never been through was sure to make it to the finals and the game was closely contested. Batting first, South Africa had lost two early wickets when Faf du Plessis, Rilee Rossouw, and AB de Villiers laid a solid foundation for a big score. However, a rain interruption meant the match was reduced to a 43-over game. When play resumed, du Plessis fell for 82, but David Miller stepped in with a quickfire 18-ball 49 to take South Africa to 281 for 5, with de Villiers remaining unbeaten on 65. The chase saw a blitzkrieg 26-ball 59 by Brendon McCullum and a steady 34 by Guptill. Grant Elliot and Corey Anderson (58) then put on 97 runs for the 5th wicket to see New Zealand inching closer to the finals. Elliot then played the knock of his life, an unbeaten 84 off 73 balls to take New Zealand over the line with a ball to spare. Emotions erupted on the ground as South African players were in tears and the New Zealanders ran around in joy and later were seen consoling their Protea counterparts. 1. Australia v New Zealand – ICC World Cup (Group Stages): (© Getty Images) The best match of the year was perhaps one of the lowest scoring matches of this year. New Zealand was cruising in its chase of 152 through a 5th wicket partnership of 52 between Kane Williamson and Corey Anderson at Auckland when Glenn Maxwell removed Anderson. The game turned on its head after that and went on to become a classic. Mitchell Starc proved to be the protagonist with his swinging deliveries. He had Luke Ronchi caught behind off a well-directed short delivery and bowled Adam Milne and Tim Southee to finish with 6/28, as New Zealand was left needing six runs with one wicket in hand. Trent Boult played out two deliveries from Starc and that brought Williamson back on strike against Pat Cummins, who had contributed to the drama by accounting for Daniel Vettori. Williamson hit a straight six off the first ball of the 24th over to calmly finish among the tensest matches in history. Earlier in the match, Boult’s five-wicket haul had reduced Australia to 106 for 9 before Brad Haddin’s gallant 43 extended the total to 151. New Zealand got off to a flying start with McCullum scoring a blazing 24-ball 50. He fell to Cummins and the real action began right after that. Also Read – Best ODI XI of the year 2015

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6 Best ODI matches of the year 2015

4. New Zealand v England – 4^th ODI at Nottingham:

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