New Zealand started their campaign in the World Cup in style, trouncing England by nine wickets in the World Cup opener at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmadabad on Thursday. 

New Zealand’s stand-in captain Tom Latham won the toss and elected to field. England lost wickets at regular intervals despite the fact that Joe Root anchored much of its innings. His 70-run stand with captain Jos Buttler off 72 balls was England's highest. They were losing wickets frequently and got into a real spot of bother when Root fell for 77 off 86. 

The last 10 overs turned out nightmarish for them and they eventually managed to get to a score of 282/9 in 50 overs.

In reply, New Zealand lost an early wicket but Rachin Ravindra and Devon Conway got the boundaries flowing for them. Conway eventually scored his century in just 83 deliveries while Ravindra slammed his ton in style, hammering English bowlers all around the park. 

Kiwis missed Kane Williamson as expected while England were without Ben Stokes.

New Zealand's Matt Henry was the pick of the bowlers as the pacer bagged three wickets and leaked 48 runs in 10 overs. However, it was Ravindra, who picked up the ‘player of the match’ award for his brilliant century against the defending champions.