Virat Kohli’s 95, following Mohammed Shami’s 5-54 in his first World Cup 2023 game, helped India beat New Zealand by four wickets to take the top spot in the points table. A late collapse triggered by Shami kept the then table-toppers to 273 despite Daryl Mitchell’s career-best 130. Kohli’s knock built on the platform set by Rohit Sharma in the Powerplay, kept India’s chase on track despite the ebbs and flows.
Rohit’s no holds barred approach had been key to India’s success and the captain was typically on the attack early. He skipped down twice to Matt Henry, lofted Trent Boult straight down the ground and slog-swept Mitchell Santner to hammer four sixes in his 40-ball stay. However, Lockie Ferguson’s introduction spelt double trouble. The pacer struck twice in his first eight balls to dent India’s strong start by dismissing both well set openers. Rohit dragged an inside edge onto his middle-stump while Shubman Gill upper cut a short one straight to third man. Shreyas Iyer though kept ticking with a flurry of boundaries off the pacer to take India past the 100 mark, shortly after which a thick fog cover engulfed the ground, causing a 11-minute interruption.
Ferguson leaked more boundaries on the other side of the forced break – Kohli caressing one through covers and flicking another one to the legside in the same over. However, shortly after the fifty stand, Boult exploited Iyer’s shortcomings against the short-ball and sent India’s no. 4 packing on 33.
New Zealand managed to pull things back with Rachin Ravindra squeezing in some tight overs in his opening spell, but a rare overpitched slot ball was duly punished for six by Kohli. KL Rahul, who had started sedately, was just about beginning to catch up when a calculated review by New Zealand meant the partnership was broken just after the fifty milestone. Turned down on field, Santner took the LBW call against Rahul upstairs and the three reds got him his first wicket. In the very next over, a sharp diving effort from him resulted in the unfortunate run out of Suryakumar Yadav, after a mix-up with Kohli.
Kohli carried on unfazed though, joining hands with Jadeja when India needed another 83 in the last 16 overs. The allrounder got going with back-to-back boundaries off Ferguson and even survived an early LBW scare, but played an ideal second fiddle to Kohli, often helping release the pressure with a timely boundary. The duo played out Santner carefully, while chipping away with some sharp running between the wickets. With the equation down to a tense 26 off 30, Kohli caught up with a six and a four off a returning Boult to put India firmly in the driver’s seat but an untimely slog cost him a second century of the tournament. However, India were just five away and Jadeja wrapped up the formalities to help India make it five in five.
Earlier, it was Mitchell’s century no. 5 in ODIs that helped New Zealand to 273. Alongside Ravindra (75), helped the team recover from a precarious 19/2, but a late collapse of 6 for 30 had kept New Zealand to just about par score.
India’s decision to bowl first was vindicated by the pacers early. Jasprit Bumrah was on the money and the early strikes from Mohammed Siraj and Shami meant they could muster only 34/2 in the PowerPlay – the third-lowest score in that phase this World Cup. Mitchell then joined hands with Ravindra to bail New Zealand out with their 159-run partnership.
Ravindra had a fair bit of brush with DRS and lifelines, and decided to make India pay. He was yet to get off the mark when, against Bumrah’s advice, India burnt a review on a LBW call. The left-hander was adjudged caught behind on six off Shami but got out of it using a review, and then got a reprieve in the same over when his namesake dropped a knee-high regulation catch at backward point. Post a 56-ball half-century, Ravindra was given LBW but had it overturned when the replays confirmed the ball was pitching outside leg.
The spinners barely got any turn. Jadeja bowled his 10 on the trot without any break while Mitchell laid into Kuldeep Yadav by depositing two in his succeeding overs straight down the ground. He was the face of New Zealand’s counterattack in the middle-overs, raising his second half-century of the World Cup in 60 balls and going on to convert it into a run-a-ball hundred. Mitchell also got a couple of lives, with KL Rahul spilling a tough chance behind and then Bumrah dropping another sitter.
Shami eventually broke the stubborn stand, triggering the collapse around a well-set Mitchell. After three spilled chances, India finally managed to cling on to one when Ravindra lofted straight to long-on. This was followed by a 40-ball phase where the hosts didn’t concede any boundary to the power-hitters. Glenn Phillips broke the shackles with a six to welcome Siraj back at the death but his cameo ended with a top-edge off an attempted slog that Rohit pouched safely amidst three converging fielders.
Shami added three more scalps to his tally at death, perfectly executing a couple of yorkers to knock down the off-stump of Mitchell Santner and the leg-stump of Matt Henry off successive balls in the 48th over. His fifth was the prized scalp of Mitchell who holed out on the penultimate ball of their innings, while a run-out off the last capped off a dramatic collapse that cost New Zealand their first game of the tournament.
Brief scores:
New Zealand 273 all out in 50 overs (Daryl Mitchell 130, Rachin Ravindra 75; Mohammed Shami 5-54, Kuldeep Yadav 2-73) lost to India 274/6 in 48 overs (Virat Kohli 95, Rohit Sharma 46; Lockie Ferguson 2-63) by 4 wickets