New Zealand won the first match of the World Cup. They dismantled the English bowlers to win the match by 9 wickets. Specifically, it was Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra who won the match for New Zealand. Rachin Ravindra, who scored the first century of his ODI career in the first match of the World Cup, said after the match that his idol is Sachin Tendulkar.

In the opening match of the World Cup, England collected 282 runs by losing 9 wickets in the scheduled 50 overs. In response, Kiwi opener Will Young was the victim of a golden duck when he came down to bat. However, New Zealand did not lose any more wickets after that. Rachin Ravindra and Devon Conway brought victory to the team with an unbeaten partnership of 273 runs.

Coming down to bat at No. 3, Ravindra played an unbeaten innings of 123 runs off 96 balls. His innings consisted of 11 fours and five sixes. This is the first century of his ODI career. Ravindra was questioned about the impact that Rahul Dravid and Tendulkar have had on his playing during a press conference that took place after the match. In response, Ravindra stated that Tendulkar was his idol. Ravindra was given his name to honor Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, with the combination of their first names becoming the name 'Rachin'.

“I think those two are pretty special cricketers. Obviously, I've heard a lot of stories and watched a lot of footage and the influence from my parents and the old-school Indian cricketers was pretty cool Obviously, I idolized Sachin Tendulkar. I think a lot of people did. I think the way he batted and his technique was beautiful to watch,” said Ravindra.

Ravindra also praised Conway. “Luckily I had Devon out there to show me how to do it. (I am) Very very close with Devon. Special to finish it off with him. 4-5 years ago, we all knew Devon would become the player he is. Above all he's a great guy,” he added.