The Men in Blue savored individual greatness and team steadiness as they defeated New Zealand in the World Cup semifinals on Wednesday night at the Wankhede Stadium. Virat Kohli’s 50th ODI century, Shreyas Iyer’s century, and Mohammed Shami’s seven for 57 all combined to help India overcome Kane Williamson’s men by 70 runs.
New Zealand concluded with 327 in 48.5 overs, chasing India’s 397 for four. After losing to the same opponent in the 2019 World Cup semifinal in Manchester, Rohit Sharma’s side flipped the tables and will now face the winner of the Australia-South Africa semifinal on November 19 in Ahmedabad.
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Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra got New Zealand off to a good start. Conway, on the other hand, nibbled on Shami’s opening delivery and witnessed K.L. Rahul make a diving catch. With a tight defense and attentive eyes, Williamson drove a four off Shami, who scalped Ravindra, earning an edge.
Williamson and Daryl Mitchell then put on a brave 181-run third-wicket stand. While smashing a six off Shami, the latter was all swagger. When Rahul unintentionally disturbed the stumps, Williamson had a tight shave, and there was no solid evidence concerning whether the second bail was also dislodged before the direct throw disturbed the timber with Williamson’s bat on the line.
Later, Shami dismissed Williamson for 52, but Mitchell was in fine form, smashing out at Jasprit Bumrah and quickly registering his ton. Williamson (69) was defeated by Shami, who also defeated Tom Latham. Despite Mitchell’s magnificent 134 (119b, 9×4, 7×6), the twin blow was too much for New Zealand.
In the afternoon, Rohit won the toss, chose to bat, and set a fast pace. After hitting a four off Trent Boult, Rohit blasted the following ball beyond mid-off as the first over produced ten runs. After that, his partner Shubman Gill tucked into Tim Southee before Rohit unleashed a slew of drives and pulls as both Boult and Southee felt the heat of the Indian captain’s bat.
Spinner Mitchell Santner was lifted into the seats, and Rohit (47) appeared to be on his way to more when he mistimed a stroke against Southee and Williamson called the skier out on a nicety. While Kohli waited, Gill altered gears, drew seamers, and danced down to the spinners. He winced in anguish, gripped his thighs, and returned to the pavilion at the age of 79.
Kohli continued to bag his runs as Shreyas took the initiative. He lofted Ravindra for six, a pattern he repeated against Southee and Boult. A four off Lockie Ferguson hinted at a shift in strategy from Kohli, and soon Boult and Southee got the batsman at his best.
The stadium erupted with ‘Kohli, Kohli’ shouts as Kohli approached his 50th ODI ton. A two-off Ferguson cleared the way for a new record. Soon after reaching his ton, Kohli (117, 113b, 9×4, 2×6), Shreyas (105, 70b, 4×4, 8×6), and Suryakumar Yadav all fell while attempting to hustle, and India concluded with a score far beyond the rival’s grasp.
Scoreboard:
INDIA
Rohit Sharma c Williamson b Southee 47 (29b, 4×4, 4×6), Virat Kohli c Conway b Southee 117 (113b, 9×4, 2×6), Shubman Gill (not out) 80 (66b, 8×4, 3×6), Shreyas Iyer c Mitchell b Boult 105 (70b, 4×4, 8×6), Suryakumar Yadav c Phillips b Southee 1 (2b) K.L. Rahul (not out) 39 (20b, 5×4, 2×6), ; Extras (b-1, lb-1, w-6): 8; Total (for four wkts. in 50 overs): 397.
FALL OF WICKETS
1-71 (Rohit, 8.2 overs), 2-327 (Kohli, 43.6), 3-381 (Shreyas, 48.5), 4-382 (Suryakumar, 49.1).
NEW ZEALAND BOWLING
Boult 10-0-86-1, Southee 10-0-100-3, Ferguson 8-0-65-0, Santner 10-1-51-0, Ravindra 7-0-60-0, Phillips 5-0-33-0.
NEW ZEALAND
Devon Conway c Rahul b Shami 13 (15b, 3×4), Rachin Ravindra c Rahul b Shami 13 (22b, 3×4), Daryl Mitchell c Jadeja b Shami 134 (119b, 9×4, 7×6), Kane Williamson c Suryakumar b Shami 69 (73b, 8×4, 1×6), Tom Latham lbw b Shami 0 (2b), Glenn Phillips c Jadeja b Bumrah 41 (33b, 4×4, 2×6), Mitchell Santner c Rohit b Siraj 9 (10b), Mark Chapman c Jadeja b Kuldeep 2 (5b), Tim Southee c Rahul b Shami 9 (10b, 1×4), Trent Boult (not out) 2 (2b); Lockie Ferguson c Rahul b Shami 6 (3b, 1×6); Extras (b-4, lb-5, w-19, nb-1): 29; Total (in 48.5 overs): 327.
FALL OF WICKETS
1-30 (Conway, 5.1), 2-39 (Ravindra, 7.4), 3-220 (Williamson, 32.2), 4-220 (Latham, 32.4), 5-295 (Phillips, 42.5), 6-298 (Chapman, 43.5), 7-306 (Mitchell, 45.2), 8-319 (Santner, 47.5), 9-321 (Southee, 48.2).
INDIA BOWLING
Bumrah 10-1-64-1, Siraj 9-0-78-1, Jadeja 10-0-63-0, Shami 9.5-0-57-7, Kuldeep 10-0-56-1.
Toss: India; PoM: Shami.
India won by 70 runs.
