The Volts scored what seemed like a healthy total of 302. With Wellington slumping to 89 for five, Otago appeared on course to register a win in its opening one-day match, but the Volts did not have the bowling firepower to complete the win.
Luke Woodcock led the fightback with a fine knock of 92, and Matt Taylor took care of the run rate with a whirlwind innings of 56. Anurag Verma’s undefeated innings of 42 also proved instrumental in the three-wicket win. He drove a delivery from Bradley Scott down the ground for a boundary to seal victory with the best part of two overs remaining.
Otago had some bad luck with key bowler Jimmy Neesham leaving the field with an abdominal strain after four overs. Josh Finnie also left the field.
"Losing six overs from Neesham was a big loss considering the way he has bowled at the death in the T20 campaign," Otago coach Rob Walter said.
"You don’t want to blame a loss on any one moment but that was a match-defining moment, for sure."
Otago captain Hamish Rutherford had few options left but to step up and bowl and he also threw the ball to batsman Michael Bracewell.
Part-time left-arm spin bowler Anaru Kitchen continues to make big improvements with the ball. He took four for 49 from 10 overs and his innings of 60 helped his side recover from a poor start after Otago had collapsed to 44 for three.
Kitchen played a positive brand of cricket. He picked on the short boundary and used the wind to deposit a couple of sixes over the rope at wide mid-on.
The introduction of leg-spinner Scott Borthwick brought Otago more relief. Kitchen struck consecutive boundaries and Neesham, who batted at No 4, upped the ante in Borthwick’s next over, clouting consecutive sixes.
Wellington responded by bringing back strike bowler Hamish Bennett. He pitched the ball up in search of the stumps and got hit back over his head for two sixes. The first sounded a little clunky as it left Neesham’s bat but the second made a lovely thwack and flew over the embankment.
The over was a write-off until Neesham made a mistake off the last ball, steering a catch straight to Michael Papps at backward point. He left for 65 but the pair had added 115 from 98 deliveries.
Otago’s innings threatened to unravel with Kitchen’s departure and the quick wickets of Finnie and Derek de Boorder.
But No9 batsman Christi Viljoen cracked a valuable 55 from 42 and Bracewell held firm in the middle order with 51.
Viljoen was run out off the last ball trying to steal one more run for the team. Wicketkeeper Tom Blundell hit the stumps with an underarm effort.
Blundell became the victim of an even better run out later in the match when Wilson hit the stumps from side on and about 25m away.
Blundell had looked good getting through to 41. His dismissal left Wellington’s innings in tatters at 89 for five.
"It has been the tale of the season, hasn’t it? We started brilliantly [with the ball] but just lacked the firepower to capitalise on five down," Walter said.
Kitchen had proven an unlikely hero. He bowled Papps and had Borthwick stumped, then Hamish Marshall spooned him a return catch. But with Neesham missing, Otago started to struggle. Taylor went on a six-hitting spree, slapping seven of them in a 35-ball half century.
Woodcock’s dismissal for 92 offered some brief hope. But Jeetan Patel (25 not out) and Verma were good enough to finish off.
In the other two games, Sean Solia scored 152 to help Auckland record a 161-run win against Northern Districts at Eden Park Outer Oval. Canterbury edged Central Districts by two wickets in Rangiora.
● Otago secured a first-innings win against Canterbury at the national under-17 tournament in Lincoln on Saturday. Otago posted 314 for eight declared and dismissed the home team for 289. Spinner Ben Lockrose took five for 78.
In its second match, Auckland is 84 for five in reply to Otago’s total of 159.
