Image Source: BCCI.TV
India enter final of World Cup with 70-run win over New Zealand in first semifinal in Mumbai.
The Black Caps were bowled out for 327 in their reply, with pacer Shami (7-57) taking the first four wickets — including two in three deliveries when New Zealand was going well on 220-2. Daryl Mitchell hit 134 off 119 balls.
In a dramatic World Cup semi-final match, India defeated New Zealand by 70 runs to secure their place in the final. The victory was sealed by a remarkable bowling performance from Mohammed Shami, who claimed seven wickets for 57 runs, the best bowling figures in a World Cup semi-final.
India's victory was set up by a massive total of 397 for four, with Virat Kohli scoring a world-record 50th ODI century and Shreyas Iyer hitting a brilliant 105. Captain Rohit Sharma also contributed with a quickfire 47 off 29 balls.
New Zealand came out fighting in their chase, with Kane Williamson and Daryl Mitchell putting on a partnership of 181 runs. However, after their dismissals, the middle order collapsed, and they were eventually bowled out for 327 in 48.5 overs.
India's victory was a well-deserved one, and they will now go on to face either England or Australia in the final. The match was a great spectacle of cricket, and it will be long remembered by fans of the game.
Firstly, congrats to India. They have played great cricket throughout. They played their best game today. They are a top side and played top cricket. Credit to the guys. Proud of the guys to stay in the fight. Disappointing to go out in the knock-out stages. The effort was there. India are a top-class side. The world-class batters just came out and batted beautifully. They got to 400. Was tough as the ball was moving around. Credit to India, they outplayed us. Nice to be out there to give us a chance. Fantastic crowd. Slightly one-sided. Special to be here and glad to be hosted by India. As a team, there is real commitment to the cricket we wanted to play. Rachin and Mitchell were special. They played really well. Bowlers chipped in here and there. Lot of fight. Very proud. Ultimately it is moving forward as a team. Kane Williamson, New Zealand captain
I have played a lot of cricket here, you cannot relax. You got to get the job done as quickly as possible. We knew there'll be pressure on us. We were calm even though we were a bit sloppy on the field. These things are bound to happen, glad that we could get the job done. When the scoring rate is above 9, you gotta take chances. They gave us chances, we didn't take them, Mitchell and Williamson batted brilliantly. We had to stay calm. The crowd went silent, that's the nature of the game. We knew we had to pull something from our sleeves. We tried everything and Shami was brilliant. The top five-six batters, they have made it count. Very pleased with what Iyer has done in this tournament. Gill, the way he batted upfront was brilliant, unfortunately he had to return back. Kohli, as usual, was brilliant, played his trademark innings and got to his landmark. All in all, the batting was superb. That's the template we want to move with. England game, we got only 230 on the board. The way our bowlers bowled upfront, they picked wickets. Today, I wouldn't say there was no pressure. Guys were doing the job. We wanted to do what we've been doing in the first nine games. Things came off really nice. Rohit Sharma - Indian captain
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan, Prasidh Krishna, Suryakumar Yadav.
New Zealand squad: Kane Williamson (c), Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitch Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Will Young.
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