Kiwi test for India

Four Captains, Three matches, one mission

Head to Head in world cup.

So we have got our top four teams for the Semi-final clash. India tops the point table with 15 points in the league stage, followed by Australia, England and New Zealand. New Zealand and Pakistan were stuck on the same points but the former with a better net run rate advanced through to grab the fourth spot. India will be eager to take on the Blackcaps in the first semifinal clash to be played on 9th July,2019 in Manchester, whereas the arch-rival Australia and England will be locking horns against each other on 11th July, 2019 in Birmingham.

India vs New Zealand Preview

It has been 11 long years when Virat Kohli was up against Kane Williamson in the under 19 world cup in Malaysia (27th Feb,2008). Back then Kohli was leading his side and so does Kane Williamson but none of them have ever anticipated that they will be up against each other once again, marshalling their troops for an epic clash. India won that game courtesy DL method by 7 wickets to go through to the Finals of under 19.

New Zealand have a uphill task against Team India.

The stage is set for both the teams who are facing each other for the first time in a knockout game (back then it was under 19). New Zealand are coming into this game after three successive defeats in the league stage, thanks to their net run rate which was better than the Pakistan who were also hung on the same points in the points table. Kiwis have been often given the tag of underdogs, but irrespective of that they have always punched above their weights. They were the runners up in the last edition of this mega showpiece event played in Australia and New Zealand. Kane Williamson's led men will be hoping to better their records by one step ahead and to lift the trophy. Their batting has not perform according to their potential which will be a cause of concern for men in Black. Except Kane Williamson, who has scored 481 runs in 7 innings so far, there has not been much to talk about. Martin Guptil's failure at the top adds extra pressure on their middle order. Ross Taylor too, had not been at his best. There has been few handy contributions from Tom Latham and Jmaes Neesham down the order. But they heavily bank on their bowling line up, comprising of Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry and Tim Southee. Mitchell Santner might not have been getting wickets but he has been quite successfull in controlling the flow of runs from one end.

Team India will look to better its record from cwc15.

It has been Ro-HIT-man Sharma show far.

Indian team on the other hand will feel far more confident going into this match. They have only lost to England in the group stage. Earlier, their match against New Zealand on 13th June, 2019 at Nottingham was washed out because of the rain. Apart from few hiccups in the league stages, they have outplayed their opposition in all the three departments. Rohit Sharma in particular has been in sensational form with the bat. After the century against the Sri Lanka in the last league match, he became the only batsman to score 5 centuries in a single edition of the World Cup. Rohit has scored 647 runs in 8 innings so far. He needs 27 more runs to go past Sachin Tendulkar's record of 673 runs in a single edition. KL Rahul who replaced Shikhar Dhawan at the top of the order, gain back his form where he registered his first century of the World Cup. He became the first Indian batsman to score his maiden test, ODI and T20 century in England.

From Under 19 World cup to Senior World Cup rivals.

Virat Kohli, too has been in sublime form this season. But he is yet to register his first century of the tournament. He has back to back 5 fifties to his name. It is rare to see him not converting those starts into big hundreds. Who knows today might be the day.

Spearhead of the Indian bowling unit.

Indian Bowling line up looks far more formidable as compared to the Kiwi's. With Bumrah and Shami upfront, with the new ball can swung the ball both ways with pace. It would be interesting to see the combination Kohli would go with. Bhuvi who was declared fit and bowled well against the Lankan Lions might tempt Kohli to go with an extra seam option. It will then allow him to play only one spinner in the side.