Second delivery of the 33rd over, Kane Williamson sniffed an opportunity to whip a Mohammed Shami delivery off his pads for a maximum. The shot was on for the delivery angling into the right-hander but it just didn’t have enough legs to clear Suryakumar Yadav stationed in the square-leg region. No way Surya was missing that comfortable opportunity and India finally picked the wicket they wanted for close to 25 overs.
It was Shami who had removed in-form Rachin Ravindra in the 8th over but it was a long wait after that as the dominating show by the pair of Williamson (69) and Daryl Mitchell (134) kept the Black Caps alive in the mammoth 398-run chase. The period saw the duo put on a brilliant 181-run partnership and frustrate India in the process. Yes, there was a sitter dropped by Shami in the 29th over but that probably was the only opportunity which came their way during the daddy stand.
Mitchell, in particular, put the pressure back on India, just like he had done during his hundred in Dharamsala. He scored at least one boundary off every Indian bowler and looked in complete control while going big, just like he did in Dharamsala. However, unlike the Dharamsala game where New Zealand were setting a target, New Zealand had a mountain to climb in Mumbai and were just one wicket away from losing way.
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That one wicket arrived courtesy Shami and the crafty seamer also sent the next man in Tom Latham back to the hut, without allowing him to disturb the scorers. From 220/2, New Zealand were reduced to 220/4 and still had a lot of runs to score. 178 to be precise in 17.2 overs. Mathematically possible but it was Mitchell or nothing from that stage. Batting comfortably over hundred, his second of the tournament against the same opposition, he did flex his muscles but the pressure was doubling up with every dot delivery.
Someone had to do the job from the other end too and Glenn Phillips did provide that spark with a 33-ball 41 but even that wasn’t enough at that stage. Asking rate flirting around the 15 mark, New Zealand needed at least two big hits every over and every dot ball during that stage was an event.
Credit to New Zealand for putting India under pressure for the second time in the tournament but the Men in Blue had enough runs on the board even on a surface which did ease out under lights. There was turn on offer for the spinners but the pace off the strip never threatened the batters.
30-40 runs less could well have been a different story and that’s how well New Zealand approached the chase after the early hiccups. 398 was a steep climb and it needed more than a Mitchell special to cross the line. He kept them alive, kept the big shots going but it was just too much.
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The Shami magic
Of the ten New Zealand wickets which fell, Shami picked seven, his second dominating performance against the same opposition. It was against the Kiwis where he returned to the Playing XI and made instant impact with a fifer, and has never looked back since then.
In just six games, he has picked 23 wickets and has been India’s wrecker-in-chief in this World Cup with the ball. Sample this: the second highest wicket-taker in this World Cup is Adam Zampa with 22 scalps and he has played three, yes three, more games than Shami. The seamer’s strike-rate is 10.91 and he is averaging 9.13 in the six games he has played so far. It was a game which saw him strike during different periods of play and exhibit control on a surface where most bowlers struggled.
With their tenth win on the trot, the Indian juggernaut moves into the final and the way they are playing at the moment, it will take some doing for the winner of Australia vs South Africa to stop them in the title clash in Ahmedabad on November 19.
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