Australia experienced three interruptions due to rain while playing against New Zealand in their T20I series, ultimately securing a victory of 27 runs in Auckland.

Unfortunately, ex-captain Steve Smith faced another obstacle on Sunday in his efforts to secure a spot on the squad for the T20 World Cup in June. He was unable to perform successfully yet again.

Australia scored 118 runs for the loss of 4 wickets in 10.4 overs during an innings that was disrupted twice by showers in Auckland.

The third rain delay brought an end to their innings and resulted in the Black Caps needing to chase a revised total of 126 in 10 overs. However, Australia’s bowlers held them to 98-3 at Eden Park.

With not much at stake in the unimportant match, the focus was primarily on Smith’s batting performance.

At the age of 34, he has been transformed into a top batting choice towards the end of his career. He was given another opportunity to open the batting with David Warner out.

However, Smith made a humble exit after facing only three balls, indicating that he may not have a secure spot on the team for his fourth World Cup appearance.

The 34-year-old opened his scoring with a classic pull towards the boundary, but on his second attempt to cut a rising delivery from Adam Milne, he was caught by wicketkeeper Tim Seifert with a half-hearted effort.

Smith was the sole Australian player who was dismissed without making a noteworthy impact on the match, which was affected by rain.

Matt Short and Glenn Maxwell had powerful performances, scoring 27 runs off 11 deliveries and 20 runs off nine deliveries, respectively. Travis Head also played well, accumulating 33 runs off 30 deliveries.

Josh Inglis and Tim David, who scored 14 runs off eight balls and eight runs off three balls respectively, were still at the crease when their time was cut short due to rain.

Despite being without key players like Kane Williamson, Devon Conway, and Rachin Ravindra, New Zealand appeared to be at a disadvantage and did not seem capable of winning their pursuit.

Will Young and Tim Siefert were dismissed early, paving the way for the crucial partnership of Finn Allen and Glenn Phillips to take the field. They needed 96 runs from 43 balls.

Phillips was angry as Nathan Ellis delivered four consecutive dot balls with outswingers, resulting in the needed run-rate increasing from 12 to 15 per over.

The situation worsened when Allen was caught out by Adam Zampa’s bowling, causing the Black Caps to lose control of the game.

New Zealand’s top performer was Phillips, who scored an unbeaten 40 runs in 24 deliveries. However, he was unable to find other players who could match his performance.

Spencer Johnson had a strong performance with the ball, taking 1 wicket for 10 runs in two overs. Ellis also had a good showing, with figures of 0 wickets for 11 runs in two overs.

Mitch Marsh, who led Australia in the first two matches, was awarded the title of player of the series.

“Winning by a score of three to zero is an impressive accomplishment,” stated Marsh. “Playing in New Zealand has always presented a difficult challenge, particularly against their T20 team which is a strong unit.”

Before the start of the Test series at Wellington’s Basin Reserve on Thursday, Australia decided to make three modifications for the third match by resting Marsh, Pat Cummins, and Josh Hazlewood.

Mitch Santner, the captain of the Black Caps, expressed disappointment over missed chances on the field, with a total of seven dropped efforts. However, he believes that these losses will not affect the team’s confidence for the upcoming Tests.

Santner expressed that the series did not go as planned, but they can put it behind them and focus on the upcoming Tests. He also mentioned that facing Australia at home is a significant event.

The outcome signifies that Australia still holds onto the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy, which used to only be played for in ODIs, but is now up for grabs in all short-form series.

Source: theguardian.com