New Zealand A storm to convincing win over Aussies

New Zealand A have surged to a stunning 225-run win over Australia A at Allan Border Field thanks to a couple of standout performances from allrounders Sean Solia and Scott Kuggeleijn.

After being bowled out for 147 on day one, it was a remarkable turnaround from the visitors, who took the final eight wickets today for just 96 runs, with only Test hopeful Cameron Bancroft (47) making a meaningful contribution for the Australians, who were skittled for 127 in their second innings.

"We obviously had a really good first day, but then we got outplayed from that moment onwards," said Bancroft.

"Our batting wasn't quite good enough – they were just able to control us and we probably didn't hang in there quite long enough – and our bowling was just a bit off; we weren't able to build pressure, and they hurt us."  

Australia resumed on a sunny Brisbane morning at 1-31 with a further 322 required for victory. First-innings top scorer Caleb Jewell raced to 15 from 13 balls but his own adventurousness brought him undone when he elected to hoick a particularly short bouncer from Kuggeleijn from outside off stump straight to Josh Clarkson at deep backward square leg.

From there the Australia A middle order came and went in a procession across the opening session, with the home side losing 4-37 inside 15 overs to all but put themselves out of the contest.

The surprise destroyer for the New Zealanders was allrounder Solia. After making 91 from the top of the order in his side's second innings, the right-arm medium-pacer added to his tidy first-innings figures of 2-38 from 13 overs with the wickets of Nathan McSweeney (7), Campbell Kellaway (1) and Jimmy Peirson (8).

Solia was able to extract something from the pitch others had failed to do so, and it paid handsome dividends through a spell of 3-15 from seven overs.

"That was the first time I'd faced him, and he bowled nicely," Bancroft said. "From one end he had a really nice crack (in the pitch) for the right-handers which was offering a little bit, and he wasn't quick but he had some nice skills and was able to move the ball off the wicket and swing it both ways. He was tough work out there."

Australia A captain McSweeney was his first victim, trapped lbw playing the wrong line to a ball that was angled in and just straightened ever so slightly before cannoning into the pad.

The left-handed Kellaway then lashed at a wide, shorter delivery and creamed his cut shot but picked out Nick Kelly at gully, who took a sensational catch.

Peirson then played and missed to a ball that jagged back from outside off stump and became another lbw victim, and when Kuggeleijn knocked over Mitch Perry (19) on what proved to be the final ball before lunch, the hosts were reeling at 6-112.

Only Bancroft offered more than meagre resistance, the right-hander working his way patiently to 46no at the first interval and unfurling a couple of nice drives to the cover and mid off boundaries.

The Western Australian was first to go after lunch however, adding just a single to his total before becoming Kuggeleijn's eighth victim of the match when he was adjudged lbw to bring an end to his 113-ball stay.

"It would've been nice to have been 50 or 60 not out at the end there," Bancroft said. "But I thought I implemented some things that I improved on from the first innings, and it's the first game of the summer, there are lots of positives to take from it, and hopefully I can keep building from there."

After Mark Steketee (0) came and went, Mitchell Swepson thrashed a quick 14 – including one monster six over backward square, but Kuggeleijn had the last laugh when he had the leggie caught a couple of balls later, ending the match with Australia A 9-127 and the hamstrung Joel Paris unable to bat.

"There were quick a few cracks and plates that had developed over the four days, and they just hit really nice areas, and made it difficult or us to score, and put us under pressure with our defence," Bancroft said. "I thought they just bowled beautifully, and made it really hard for us, and they got good rewards for it."

The two sides meet again for a second four-day fixture in Mackay from September 4, with Australia A expected to field an entirely new bowling attack with the possible exception of Jordan Buckingham or Mitch Perry, one of whom is likely to turn out as a replacement for Redbacks quick Wes Agar, who is nursing a sore lower back.

"It's a totally different assignment up there – day-night, pink ball," Bancroft added. "I'm not 100 per cent sure what the conditions will be like but we'll have to assess that and really improve in all areas, and hopefully give them a bit of a better run for their money than we did this week."

Australia A v New Zealand A series

First four-day match: August 28-31, Allan Border Field

Second four-day match: September 4-7, Great Barrier Reef Arena (D/N)

Australia A four-day squad: Wes Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Jordan Buckingham, Ben Dwarshuis, Caleb Jewell, Campbell Kellaway, Matthew Kelly, Matthew Kuhnemann, Nathan McAndrew, Nathan McSweeney, Joel Paris, Jimmy Peirson, Mitch Perry, Josh Philippe, Mark Steketee, Mitchell Swepson, Tim Ward

First one-dayer: September 10, Great Barrier Reef Arena

Second one-dayer: September 13, Allan Border Field (D/N)

Third one-dayer: September 15, Allan Border Field

Australia A one-day squad: Wes Agar, Ollie Davies, Ben Dwarshuis, Liam Hatcher, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Ben McDermott, Todd Murphy, Josh Philippe, Matthew Renshaw, Gurinder Sandhu, Matt Short, Mark Steketee, Will Sutherland, Ashton Turner

New Zealand A squad (both formats): Muhammad Abbas, Adi Ashok, Tom Bruce (c), Leo Carter, Josh Clarkson, Henry Cooper, Jacob Duffy, Cam Fletcher, Dean Foxcroft, Mitch Hay, Scott Kuggeleijn, Will O'Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Michael Rae, Brett Randell, Tim Seifert, Sean Solia