2024/25

ROUND ONE

WELLINGTON FIREBIRDS lost to AUCKLAND ACES by 54 runs with a day to spare

Cello Basin Reserve, Wellington

11-14 November 2024

POINTS IN THIS ROUND:

Central Stags: 19

Otago Volts: 4

Auckland Aces: 16

Wellington Firebirds: 6

Northern Districts: 19 (20 minus a deduction for slow over rate)

Canterbury: 8

VIDEO SCORECARD

SELECTED MILESTONES

Liam Dudding: first-class debut for Wellington Firebirds (previously Central Stags)

Bevon-John Jacobs: first-class debut (Auckland Aces, below left)

Mike Sclanders: first-class debut (Auckland Aces, above right)

Logan van Beek: 9th first class five-wicket bag (all teams)

Logan van Beek: second first-class century (first for Wellington Firebirds)

Logan van Beek: first New Zealand-born player to rceord two first-class all-round 'doubles' for two different Plunket Shield teams

Logan van Beek: 45th instance of a first-class 'double' in New Zealand cricket

SNAPSHOT:

The Auckland Aces took a good away win off defending Plunket Shield title-holders Wellington in the first match of the season - and that was despite star Firebirds allrounder Logan van Beek writing himself into the history books with a rare, second career all-round double in New Zealand first-class cricket.

The Firebirds certainly had their chances.

All images: PHOTOSPORT

But after captain Tom Blundell took the unusual step of batting first at the Cello Basin Reserve - with a later first-class season start coming into play, the Auckland Aces showed that you could bat first and win in the capital, and, do it inside three days, no less, despite a blinder from your opposition allrounder...

DAY ONE

Yes, the team that won the toss at the Cello Basin Reserve elected to bat. Not a misprint.

And initially, the questions might well have been asked about that decision, given the top five were all soon back in the hutch for a top individual score of just 16.

By lunch, the visiting Aucklanders were 83/7 after 31 action-packed overs, with ex-Canterbury player Bevon-John Jacobs, on his Aces debut, hoping to lead an afternoon recovery with young Adi Ashok.

Van Beek had struck with just the third ball of the morning to remove Sean Solia, opening in tandem with ex-Stags seamer Liam Dudding for the first time.

Dudding conceded a few early boundaries, but settled himself for a big eighth over in which he dismissed both Finn Allen and Will O'Donnell.

Next over: van Beek struck again with debutant Mike Sclanders on his way for just a single - and the opening attack still wasn't done with their carnage.

The allrounder van Beek picked up one more early victim in keeper-batter Quinn Sunde before the change bowlers came on, Michael Snedden and James Hartshorn picking up for the Firebirds from a perilous position of 41/5.

Later in the day, van Beek would seal his bag with a brilliant 5/35 to help dismiss the Aces for 184.

It was a decent recovery from the visitors, led by debutant Jacobs's much needed top score of 75. Jacobs is quickly showing his value in all formats, already known for his clean-hitting white ball cameos for Canterbury last season, when the Aucklander was down south on tertiary study.

He got good support from Ashok who stuck around for more than an hour for his 25 runs, before van Beek claimed both their wickets for his bag.

Danru Ferns also chimed in with 20 in the tail but it wasn't enough to get the Aces a batting point, and by tea the Firebirds were already underway at 15/1.

By stumps, that had progressed to 126/6, the boot now on the other foot as, straight out of the Basin Reserve playbook, 17 wickets fell in all, on day one.

But van Beek's busy day had continued, unbeaten on 37* by stumps with another experienced campaigner Peter Younghusband batting with him and yet to score.

DAY TWO

A day earlier, Logan van Beek had opened the New Zealand first-class cricket season with his ninth first-class five-wicket bag.

Now he added his second first-class century - to become the first Kiwi cricketer to achieve a first-class 'double' in the same match for two different NZ Domestic teams, given the experienced cricketer had also taken a bag and scored a century in the same match for Canterbury as ayoungster in October 2015 (view that game's match report here).

Only one other man has achieved the feat in New Zealand first-class history, and you have to scroll a long way back.

It was the era of World War I, 1918 when Jack Crawford (an England Test allrounder who played domestically in New Zealand) achieved the feat for Wellington at Eden Park, to add to a double he had achieved for Otago against Wellington at the Cello Basin Reserve in 1914/15.

Now the same ground has witnessed more all-round history, van Beek joining a very short list of Kiwi allrounders to have twice taken a bag and scored a century in the same match. A list that includes luminaries John R. Reid and Martin Crowe.

It was the first Plunket Shield 'double' since Mitchell Santner's all-round effort for Northern Districts against the Central Stags at Bay Oval two seasons ago, and just the 45th instance overall in New Zealand first-class cricket (and that includes Test matches - Ian Botham having twice achieved the double for England against the BLACKCAPS).

And for the Wellington Firebirds, it was the first double since John Morrison's 106 and 5/69 at Eden Park in 1977/78.

Logan van Beek today became the first NZ player to score a century & take a five-for in the same game for 2 different NZ provinces, having also done so for Canterbury. The only other player to do this is England test cricketer Jack Crawford who played for Otago & Wgtn during WW1.

— Francis Payne (@FPayne100) November 12, 2024

That's a lot of stat chat for the first two days of a red-ball cricket season.

Having resumed unbeaten on 37* with his team in a whole bag of early trouble, Van Beek reached 101 before he was dismissed by Jordan Sussex on the second day.

The Wellington Firebirds pocketed a first innings lead of 86, with two batting bonus points, to take into the second innings that commenced that afternoon in a swift-moving game.

Both teams has meanwhile pocketed the maximum four bowling points.

The Aces would end the day at 171/6 in their second dig (against a slightly different line-up, after the Firebirds substituted Test wicketkeeper-batter Tom Blundell for Callum McLachlan, with Blundell falling ill. Blundell would return on the following day).

They'd made a better start this time around, Allen (49) almost reaching a half century in a 62-run opening stand with Solia.

Will O'Donnell and Sclanders (23) then helped to string together some fledgling top order stands, while Solia had chimed in with 32, while Snedden beavered away for precious breakthroughs.

At 143/3, the Aces were looking well set to launch, but a middle-order collapse swung the momentum back to the hosts. By the end of the day there were chastened at 171/6 in 48 overs, O'Donnell anchoring and having reached a patient half ton, and Jacobs fresh off the mark looking for another big knock on the morrow.

Logan van Beek today became the first NZ player to score a century & take a five-for in the same game for 2 different NZ provinces, having also done so for Canterbury. The only other player to do this is England test cricketer Jack Crawford who played for Otago & Wgtn during WW1.

— Francis Payne (@FPayne100) November 12, 2024

DAY THREE

Yet again, the tall Jacobs had to fight back on behalf of Auckland, this time contributing a handy 79 across some two and a half hours.

After losing overnight incumbent O'Donnell (54) early, he found support from allrounder Simon Keene, batting below his station at nine and contributing a knock of 39 in their 77-run partnership.

Dudding was meanwhile a handful, going on to claim 4/49 at an economical rate, while Snedden was also tiday as he collected 3/29.

In fact, van Beek was the only bowler who went wicketless this time as the hosts drew a line under the Aces' second innings at 317 in 90.5 overs.

Now the equation was set: they would need 231 in their own second innings to win, with plenty of time left in the match to go after it.

The Auckland attack had other ideas, however, and collectively made that task too difficult, pushing the Firebirds to 58/5 by tea.

Ferns finished with 3/40, Keene 2/28 and Solia a startling 2/6 as they wrapped things on up the third afternoon.