In the 21st game of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, India beat New Zealand by four wickets at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamsala. With this win, the hosts have now won five matches in a row and have cemented their place in the first spot of the league table.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to bowl first. In the first mandatory powerplay, the Indian bowlers were right on the money with the ball, but a scintillating ton from Daryl Mitchell and a counter-attacking knock from Rachin Ravindra kept the NZ run board running, but a terrific five-wicket haul from Mohammed Shami restricted the two-time finalists on the score of 273 runs in their 50 overs.
While chasing, the two-time winners got a flying start, as Rohit (46) and Shubman Gill (26*) looked very compact with the bat, and also negated the danger of swing bowling from the Kiwi pacers, but the 36-year-old batter once again lost his momentum after having a splendid time on the deck and got dismissed by Lockie Ferguson. Virat Kohli (95) came to the turf, looked sensational once again with his bat, and started to steer the run chase, and he architected some crucial partnerships with Shreyas Iyer (33), and KL Rahul (27). Although the Indian innings got stumbled after the loss of wickets of Iyer, Rahul, and Suryakumar Yadav (2), but the 34-year-old batter looked firm and determined on the wicket, and along with Ravindra Jadeja (39*), he ensured that his side came to the driving position to clinch the encounter. However, he missed his 49th ODI century by five runs and was dismissed by Matt Henry in the 48th over. Jadeja ended the game and chased the target in 48 overs.
With the ball for NZ, Ferguson secured two wickets but was also expensive, and on the other side, Mitchell Santner, Henry, and Trent Boult got one wicket each.
In the first innings, the Men-in-Black didn’t start well, as the openers Devon Conway (0) and Will Young (17) got out cheaply, which dented the flow of runs in the opening powerplay. However, the southpaw batter, Rachin (75) and Mitchell (130) recovered their side brilliantly from the early scare. Both the batters knit a superb 159 runs partnership, which helped them to drive their tea, towards the mark of 300+ runs. But Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj once again took wickets in the death overs, which dented the Kiwi’s batting progression, and got all out on 273 runs in their given 50 overs.
For India, Shami was incredible with the ball, as he got his third five-wicket haul of his ODI career. Kuldeep Yadav secured two wickets, whereas Bumrah and Siraj got one wicket each.
Mohammad Shami was adjudged Player of the Match for his splendid five-wicket haul.
New Zealand: 273/10, Overs 50, Daryl Mitchell 130, Mohammed Shami 5/54
India: 274/6, Overs 48, Virat Kohli 95, Lockie Ferguson 2/63