Sprint start could be next T20 innovation

New Zealand star Glenn Phillips is unsure if he has found Twenty20 cricket's latest innovation after taking a sprinter's start while at the non-striker's end for swifter running between the wickets.

Phillips was the star of the Black Caps' 65-run win over Sri Lanka on Saturday, hitting 104 from 64 balls on a wicket most others struggled to score on.

The victory helped New Zealand to the verge of the World Cup finals, needing only one win from their last two games and leaving champions Australia fighting for the other spot out of the group.

But beyond Phillips' strokeplay and power, the other facet of his game was his running between the wickets and start position from the non-striker's end late on.

The 25-year-old opted to take a three-point sprint start in the final overs, in a bid to give himself the biggest running advantage without being at risk of a 'Mankad'.

"That was very much spur of the moment," Phillips said.

"There has been a lot going around about 'Mankads' and leaving the crease. 

"At the end of the day it is my responsibility to be in my crease and leave at the right time. 

"If the bowler is doing his job then he has the right to be able to take the bails off.

"So just to be able to get to that start and be able to take off as quick as possible just made sense."

Phillips is one of the quickest in New Zealand's team, with his running between the wickets a key feature in the Black Caps' regaining control after slipping to 3-15 early.

And in a game of innovation like Twenty20, he doesn't know if it will catch on.

The T20 format has regularly gone through several evolutions with both bat and ball, taking cricket to a more 360-degree game for batters and off-pace variations

But running between the wickets has largely remained unchanged, with the exception of greater use of sprint coaches as the need for speed and greater acceleration is heightened.

"Who knows? Maybe some people will use it, some won't," Phillips shrugged.

"The real reason I did it was the position I was to get into if I had my bat inside the crease I thought it would be slower to turn and take off. 

"So to have my foot inside the crease and go from there. 

"Obviously, the extension of the bat in the crease gives you an extra foot or two.

"But at the end of the day I have little arms, so my speed is probably going to get me a little further than what my reach is."