Devon Conway-Rachin Ravindra tear England apart in ODI World Cup opener as New Zealand win by 9 wickets

There was carnage in Ahmedabad, and surprisingly it was England who were at the receiving end of it all. The defending Champions were blown away by an unbelievable 273-run unbeaten partnership between Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra as New Zealand scripted a sensational 9-wicket victory against Jos Buttler's men at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday.

The Three Lions just had no answers with the ball. The World Cup winners were simply stunned in the tournament opener. A 121-ball 152* for Conway, along with a 96-ball 123* for Ravindra, and New Zealand were able to chase down the 283-run target with 82 balls to spare.

Rachin Ravindra, who only got to play against England after Lockie Ferguson pulled up with a niggle, made the most of his opportunity with a scintillating display, picking up the Player of the Match award for his superb batting show. While Devon Conway did outscore Ravindra in the match, the 23-year-old was the one who started the carnage with his brilliant counterattacking knock in the first 10 overs.

Not even one England bowler had a good outing. In fact, Mark Wood ended up giving away 55 runs in just 5 overs. Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, all conceded with an economy rate between 7.5-8. The spinners were better but no matter who the bowler was, the Kiwis were in no mood to take it easy, sending fielders to all corners of the park with some breathtaking shots.

It was a humiliation for England, who stuttered to 282 batting first, with Joe Root top-scoring with a 77. Jos Buttler too made a 42-ball 42 but like so many others, who got starts, the English batters just failed to convert them into a big one. In addition, the New Zealand bowlers kept chipping away to keep the run rate in check.

What followed in response was a thrashing for the world champions. Despite losing opener Will Young for a duck, Conway and Ravindra produced one of the best partnerships you'll ever see. They made a mockery of the boundary rope, finding it at will as they tore apart the English attack to lead their side to an incredible 9-wicket victory.

Youngest to score century on ODI World Cup debut

Virat Kohli (IND) vs BAN, 2011 WC: 22y, 106d
Andy Flower (ZIM) vs SL, 1992 WC: 23y, 301d
Rachin Ravindra (NZ) vs ENG 2023 WC: 23y, 321d
Nathan Astle (NZ) vs ENG, 1996 WC: 24y, 152d
David Miller (SA) vs ZIM, 2015 WC: 25y, 250d

Highest World Cup partnerships

372 - Chris Gayle/Marlon Samuels (WI) vs ZIM, 2015
318 - Sourav Ganguly/Rahul Dravid (IND) vs SL, 1999
282 - Tillakaratne Dilshan/Upul Tharanga (SL) vs ZIM, 2011
273* - Devon Conway/Rachin Ravindra (NZ) vs ENG, 2023
260 - David Warner/Steven Smith (AUS) vs AFG, 2015

Also read: Who is Rachin Ravindra? Indian-origin New Zealand all-rounder demolishes England in World Cup opener