India vs New Zealand: The Semi-Final Wrap Up
The mind is still boggling and seems that the Indian fans are still not over the World Cup failure. However, the team that defeated us faced a much heartbreaking end to their journey in the Final. But we’ll talk about that later because for now, it’s time to scan through the semi final between India & New Zealand at Old Trafford, Manchester.
The Toss Factor
Credits: Inside Sport
India lost the toss yet again, and Kane Williamson the Kiwi Cap, took the correct decision of batting first on a track that had something for the bowlers and was a low scoring pitch along with overcast conditions. Virat Kohli, on losing the toss, himself admitted the fact that he would have taken the same decision because chasing in a WC semi final is always a tough task. Also, considering the conditions under which the game was being played.
Kane-Taylor cruise slowly
Credits: Hindustan Times
A major factor that affected the game was the partnership between Kane Williamson & Ross Taylor. A pitch that was doing a lot for the likes of Jasprit Bumrah & other Indian pacers, both these batsmen took their own sweet time to settle themselves. Both hit their half-centuries and helped New Zealand reach a respectable total. One over by Chahal went for 18 runs that later proved to be the turning point in the game when Taylor took him for a ‘stitch’.
The Weather
Credits: India Today
The match was converted to a two-day affair after the rain played spoilsport with New Zealand at 211-5 in 46.1 overs. After resuming play on day 2, a lot of slowness into the pitch was felt and a much better movement at that. The outfield came to a standstill it seemed that made 239 a formidable total to chase. But India definitely had the depth in their batting to accomplish the task but did they? Let’s find out!
Early Wickets Derail the Chase
Credits: India TV
The Indian innings began and 10 minutes into the chase, half of the country was left heartbroken with the Indian top order making the biggest of goof-ups at the most crucial time on the world stage. Rohit Sharma got dismissed at an almost unplayable delivery by Matt Henry, Trent Boult brought one back into Captain Kohli who’s review turned out to be very unlucky for him. KL Rahul got out to an uneven bouncing delivery by Henry and the score read 5-3. Yes, it was all real.
The Drama
Credits: The SportsRush
From 5-3 it went to 24-4 and then it was 92-6. Dhoni & Jadeja put up a 116 run stand for the 7th wicket and almost took the game away from the Kiwis until Jadeja chipped one to a Kane Williamson to a Trent Boult slower one. Dhoni later took it to the wire and hit Ferguson over point for a handsome six. The equation 25 required from 10. And then, came the moment that shook the entire nation after Dhoni’s attempt for a quick double resulted into a run out after a Martin Guptill direct hit. India lost the match by 18 runs in the end.
Was it the right decision to send Pandya over Dhoni during the chase? Is it time for Dhoni to call it a day from international cricket? When will India find the solution to the number 4 slot? Why was the umpiring error before Dhoni’s runout not considered? All these questions haunt Indian Cricket since the conclusion of this game. Well, let’s see what happens however it’s foolish to not support the team right now. Believe in Blue!
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