New Zealand will play in a second successive Cricket World Cup final – having lost to Australia in 2015. Kane Williamson's captaincy has been a talking point.
While바카라 웹사이트knockout games can always produce surprises few felt New Zealand could beat India in this semi-final.바카라 웹사이트But beat them they did, by 18 runs, in a low-scoring match that few gave them any hope of winning at the halfway stage, after they’d posted 239 for eight.
In a way, it was classic New Zealand, a team that feeds on scraps and has made, perennially, the most of what it has got, which is not a fistful of superstars. Although never World Cup winners, the Black Caps have made the semi-final stage eight times in the 12 World Cups played.바카라 웹사이트
Curiously, this will be only their second final, a curio perhaps from the soundest tournament team in world cricket.
They say that the best players and teams still deliver when below par and win ugly, well, New Zealand know how to do that. Their batsmen rarely give up their wickets easily while their bowlers don’t overthink their task. They stick to the basics revealing snippets of flair only when the situation is under control, though that does not include Ross Taylor.
Focused
The team are well led, by Kane Williamson, who despite his slight stature provides impressive heft to their batting.바카라 웹사이트Coming in at three, he is almost as reliable as the atomic clock, being determined and unwavering in his quest to score big runs for his team.바카라 웹사이트
Before the semi-final he’d made 481 runs at 96.2 in this World Cup (32 percent of New Zealand라이브 바카라 runs to that point) but the 67 he made on the first day of this rained-over semi-final had a worth beyond rubies.바카라 웹사이트
After all, it had been him who’d decided to bat first under glowering Manchester skies and on a pitch offering assistance to all bowlers.바카라 웹사이트It was also him, in concert with Taylor, who probably felt 239 for eight was a better score than it looked.바카라 웹사이트
When most watching had tut-tutted the pair for showing too much caution, they appeared to have confidence in the score they were setting.바카라 웹사이트
How many other modern one-day captains would have been happy with their team racking up 158 dot balls (over half their allocation)?바카라 웹사이트
But it shows the faith Kane Williamson had in his reading not just of the conditions but the situation as well, and in not underestimating the pressures that buffet big events like semi-finals.바카라 웹사이트바카라 웹사이트
More importantly, the team trusted him and Taylor to do it their way and while a few wickets were thrown away in the hurly-burly of the restart on바카라 웹사이트Wednesday바카라 웹사이트morning, there remained the belief, in the body language of the captain, bowlers and fielders, that there was still a final to fight for.바카라 웹사이트 바카라 웹사이트 바카라 웹사이트
Playmaker
New Zealand are by no means a one-man team but Williamson라이브 바카라 role as playmaker and leader cannot be understated.바카라 웹사이트 His has been a side beset with problems from a malfunctioning top order to a misfiring middle-order. Williamson has therefore been almost the main provider of runs, along with Taylor.바카라 웹사이트
With not many runs being added from elsewhere, he has had to marshal his bowling resources shrewdly.바카라 웹사이트
Interestingly, the first thing he did was to dispense with his leg-spinner Ish Sodhi, despite many predicting wrist spin would dominate the wickets column in this World Cup.바카라 웹사이트
Yet it has not just been about subtracting but adding value as well. In the spirit of his predecessors, he makes what he does have go a long way. In that respect, he’d make an excellent Chancellor of the Exchequer.바카라 웹사이트
Even during this semi-final at Old Trafford, when India rallied strongly through a 116-run partnership from Ravindra Jadeja and MS Dhoni, he kept his team focused and calm.바카라 웹사이트
Runaway emotions can cause havoc to well-laid plans and Williamson likes a plan, which means he has to be good at maintaining clear heads.바카라 웹사이트
Fittingly, then, it was him, with not the hint of a wobble, who pouched the two skied catches from Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya that sealed India라이브 바카라 fate.
Impressive unit
While New Zealand라이브 바카라 batting has been heavily reliant on those mentioned - both Taylor (74) and Williamson (67) were top-scorers in the semi-final - New Zealand do possess an impressive bowling unit.바카라 웹사이트
Trent Boult, Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson offer pace from left-arm and right, swing, and a whole host of clever variations from cutters to slower ball bouncers.바카라 웹사이트
They also have a tall, studious spinner in Mitchell Santner, and some back-up seam bowling from Jimmy Neesham and Colin de Grandhomme.바카라 웹사이트
If they have a weakness, it is perceived to lie with those last two, though Neesham is having a decent World Cup with bat and ball.
Most of all they have operated under the radar of being one of the fancied teams, which suits them perfectly.바카라 웹사이트
Forever in the shadow of the country라이브 바카라 all-conquering rugby team, the All Blacks, people will have to pay heed if they pull a rabbit out of the hat and win this Cricket World Cup.바카라 웹사이트
After the meticulous way they dispatched India in the semi-finals, you’d be a fool to bet against them especially if they can get their big-hitting opener, Martin Guptill, back in the runs.바카라 웹사이트
If a team firing on two cylinders can reach the World Cup final, one firing on three can surely win it.바카라 웹사이트
(Courtesy: ICC)