[Watch] Trent Boult imitates his RR captain Sanju Samson in SA vs NZ World Cup warmup game in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram
Trent Boult recently imitated his Rajasthan Royals (RR) captain Sanju Samson during New Zealand's second World Cup warmup game against South Africa at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday, October 2.
In a video uploaded on social media, the left-arm pacer was seen imitating Samson near the boundary skirtings. The crowd cheered as Boult entertained them with his antics as he exactly copied Samson's way of removing and wearing the cap and playing a shot in the air.
Watch the video on X (formerly known as Twitter):
On the professional front, Boult scalped a couple of wickets in his four overs against the Proteas in the warmup game. The 34-year-old recently scalped eight wickets, including a fifer, in two matches against England before taking two wickets in his two outings against Bangladesh.
Boult has a good track record in ODI World Cups. He scalped 22 wickets (nine games) and 17 wickets (10 matches) in the 2015 and 2019 editions of the tournament, respectively. He will now look to exploit the conditions, having played 88 matches in the Indian Premier League with RR, Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, Kolkata Knight Riders, and Sunrisers Hyderabad.
As far as the warm-up match is concerned, the Kiwis beat South Africa by 7 runs via the DLS method.
Batting first, Kane Williamson-led New Zealand posted 321/6 in their allotted 50 overs. Devon Conway starred with the bat, scoring 78 runs off 73 balls, including one six and 11 boundaries. Tom Latham and Glenn Phillips then chipped in with scores of 52 (56) and 43 (40), respectively.
Lungi Ngidi and Marco Jansen scalped three wickets apiece for South Africa.
In response, the Proteas were 211/4 after 37 overs (reduced due to rain). Quinton de Kock smashed 84 off 89, including one six and 12 boundaries. Rassie van der Dussen and Heinrich Klaasen chipped in with scores of 51 (56) and 39 (37), respectively. Apart from Boult, Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi scalped one wicket apiece.
New Zealand had previously defeated Pakistan by five wickets, courtesy of Rachin Ravindra’s 97 (72) and half-centuries from Mark Chapman 65 (41), Daryl Mitchell 59 (57) and Kane Williamson 54 (50), respectively.
New Zealand schedule and squad for World Cup
New Zealand will begin their World Cup campaign against defending champions England in a repeat of the 2019 World Cup final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on October 5.
Match 1: October 5 - England vs New Zealand, Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, 2:00 PM IST
Match 6: October 9 - New Zealand vs Netherlands, Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad, 2:00 PM
Match 11: October 13 - New Zealand vs Bangladesh, MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, 2:00 PM IST
Match 16: October 18 - New Zealand vs Afghanistan, MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai 2:00 PM IST
Match 21: October 22 - India vs New Zealand, Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala, 2:00 PM IST
Match 27: October 28 - Australia vs New Zealand, Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala, 10:30 AM IST
Match 32: November 1 - New Zealand vs South Africa, Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune, 2:00 PM IST
Match 35: November 4 - New Zealand vs Pakistan, M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, 10:30 AM IST
Match 41: November 9 - New Zealand vs Sri Lanka, M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, 2:00 PM IST
New Zealand squad: Kane Williamson (c), Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitch Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Will Young.
Click here to check out the full schedule of the 2023 ODI World Cup.