After what has felt like forever we have finally reached the business end of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 with the opening semi-final taking place on Wednesday which sees the hosts India going up against New Zealand.
India won every group game to finish top of the table and will go into the semi-final as the favourites to win. New Zealand have made the last two finals though and know how to win these last four contests so we should be set for a cracking game in Mumbai.
India
There has been an inevitability that India would be in the semi-final of their home World Cup since they beat Australia relatively emphatically in their opening match. Since that moment there has been a kind of going through the motions feel about where they stand in the tournament but there can be no criticism of their performances so far. None of those matches had any jeopardy on them though so it will be interesting to see what they deliver here where there is pressure on.
The reason why India have been so dominant in the tournament so far has been their bowling attack. They have exploit conditions with the new ball ruthlessly in this event to date but on a wonderful Wankhede ground for batting they are going to need to ensure they are at their best, especially if they end up bowling second and have to bowl with the dew on a ground that is impossible to defend. Their batters could help out in that situation by posting a sizeable total.
New Zealand
I think it is fair to suggest we have seen two sides to New Zealand in this tournament. Their opening four matches were near enough flawless but then followed four where they were very indifferent, especially with the ball. That created a situation where they needed to win their last match to ensure being in this semi-final so to have won with that pressure behind them will give them a lot of confidence heading into a knockout contest like this one.
The issue with the New Zealand bowling in amidst that run that they lost four on the spin was injuries so the big thing for the Kiwis here is that they have a full set of bowlers to choose from. They will need to bowl well in good batting conditions obviously but like their opponents in this semi-final, they too have bowlers who can exploit the new ball conditions. New Zealand will also need their big players with the bat to come to the party.
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Team News
India look pretty locked in on their best XI having played the last five matches without making a change and it would be a surprise were they to make any switches to their side here barring a late illness or injury.
Kane Williamson has confirmed that everyone who remains in the squad is fit for New Zealand in this match so they are likely to be unchanged from the team which got the dominant win that they needed against Sri Lanka last time out.
Betting
You have to think that this will be a high scoring match. The lowest first innings score on this ground in four matches in this tournament is the 291/5 which Afghanistan put up against Australia and we all saw what Glenn Maxwell did in that match. The bowlers here are very good but we shouldn’t ignore the batting talent that is on show and on a ground where the pitch is so good for batting and the boundaries are so tiny I think the batters will eventually have their own way even if it comes later in the innings.
There were 62 boundaries when these two met in Dharamsala in the group phase of the competition but Devon Conway was out for a duck and there was no Kane Williamson on that occasion. He is back and Conway doesn’t fail too often in this part of the world so on a better batting track which is known for high scoring matches I can’t help but think that the 65.5 boundaries line is one which can be attacked with both teams good for more than 30 of them themselves.
Tips
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