KEY POINTS:
A record-breaking innings of 170 by Brendon McCullum carried Otago to their first national one-day title in 20 years when they beat Auckland by seven wickets with eight overs to spare in the State Shield final yesterday.
The 26-year-old New Zealand wicketkeeper was dismissed as the Volts were within four runs of the 311 for seven the Aces had scored batting first on a batsman's dream pitch on the outer oval at Eden Park.
But by then McCullum had carved his name in the national record books with an astonishing display of controlled hitting that earned him a standing ovation.
He had eclipsed the national one-day record score of 161 scored by Canterbury batsman Blair Hartland in 1993-94 and on the way scored the fastest hundred, reaching three figures off 52 balls, beating the 54 needed by Stephen Fleming against the Fica World XI in 2004-05.
When he was dismissed, caught in the deep off spinner Rob Nicol, he had needed only 108 balls for his 170 with 19 fours and seven sixes. Amazingly, it was only his second one-day century, the first coming a week ago in the State Shield semifinal.
"You crave making contributions in big games and I'm pleased it all came together today," he said. "Everybody goes through good patches and bad and I'm lucky to be on a roll at the moment.
"What I want to do is to extend it into the test series against England."
What makes the victory special for McCullum is that his father, Stu, was in the winning team 20 years ago when Otago beat Northern Districts. Stu, like Brendon, was an opener and contributed four runs off 31 balls in a low-scoring game.
McCullum's opening blitz against New Zealand teammates Chris Martin and Kyle Mills was astonishing. Despite the early loss of Aaron Redmond, he employed his quick-footed attack to the pace bowlers, forcing Martin into bowling a couple of wides and taking fours off his first three legitimate deliveries.
When they pitched the ball up, he drove powerfully. If they dropped short, he pulled them over the boundary. Mills finished with one for 45 off eight overs and Martin one for 81 off eight.
McCullum shared century partnerships with Greg Todd (38) and captain Craig Cumming, who was 86 not out at the finish and outscored his flamboyant partner as he took his foot off the accelerator to ensure victory.
Almost forgotten in the blazing batsmanship was a cultured second century of the season for Auckland opener Martin Guptill, who scored 110 for a season's tally of 596 runs at an average of 59. Captain Richard Jones made 76 and Scott Styris belted 68 off 53 balls, including 27 off an over by James McMillan.
Auckland, who beat Otago in the final last season, had been the dominant team in section play but were comprehensively outplayed yesterday.
