World was always Ronchi’s oyster
Luke Ronchi’s conversion from WA’s most frustrating player into an international star is the icing on the cake for a New Zealand team that has been focused on World Cup success for four years.
Ronchi moved back to his native New Zealand three years ago and has added enormous hitting power, as well as precise glovework behind the stumps, to a team confident of winning its first World Cup tomorrow.
New Zealand’s widespread recent success — they won five Tests for the first time in 2014 and have won their past 10 one-day internationals — is based on their outstanding pace and swing attack and enormous depth of power hitting.
Black Caps powerbrokers, including coach Mike Hesson, experienced considerable fallout over the clumsy replacement of captain Ross Taylor by Brendon McCullum 2½ years ago.
But they have been vindicated by their decision to identify and nurture the players they considered likely to win the World Cup.
It was into that environment that Ronchi moved and though it took him some time to cement his place, he did so in spectacular fashion when he slammed 170 not out in January, the highest ODI score made by a No.7.
“Luke has got a vast amount of X-factor,” former WA coach Wayne Clark said.
“He was always a brilliant stroke player and could destroy attacks, as he showed in grade and State cricket now and then, but in his early days in WA he just kept getting out.
“Whether it is maturity or that he knows his game better, he is now doing what we always believed he was capable of doing, but always wondered if he ever would.”
Ronchi provides a considerable alarm for opposition teams by following players as versatile and powerful as McCullum at the top of the order, Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson, Corey Anderson, who owned the game’s fastest century until several months ago, and Grant Elliott, whose second-last-ball six against the Proteas propelled his team into the final.
Paceman Tim Southee spearheads the New Zealand attack but he is also complemented by left-arm swing bowler Trent Boult, who was introduced to Australia in December 2011 when he bowled superbly in the team’s tight Test win at Bellerive Oval.
The seamless transition when Matt Henry had to replace the injured Adam Milne in the semifinal win over South Africa was indicative of a team in which each player knows his role.
