‘Aur yeh hua badla pura’ – Fans elated as India beat New Zealand by 70 runs in 1st Semifinal of ODI World Cup 2023
India beat NZ (Source: Twitter)
Team India are through to the final of the ODI World Cup 2023 following their 70-run win over New Zealand in the first semifinal. The cricketing world’s biggest spectacle, the ODI World Cup 2023, returned to action with hosts India taking on New Zealand in the first semifinal at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The luck was with the Men in Blue from the very beginning with skipper Rohit Sharma winning the toss and electing to bat first.
The skipper got the hosts to a great start with a quick-fire 47 off 29 balls, featuring four fours and four sixes. He was helped in his pursuit by the young and energetic Shubman Gill. The batter, who had to retire hurt in between his innings ended with a handsome 80 off 66 balls, featuring eight fours and three sixes.
However, the star of India’s batting was Virat Kohli. The talismanic batter cruised to his 50th ODI century. He ended with 117 off 113 with nine fours and two sixes. This was a world record for most centuries in ODIs, whereby, he surpassed the great Sachin Tendulkar. Notably, Tendulkar was in attendance to witness the historic feat seated beside another sporting legend, David Beckham, the global football icon.
Shreyas Iyer added another handsome century, scoring 105 off 70. Additionally, KL Rahul’s handy 39 off 20 took the team total to 397/4. Tim Southee recorded figures of 3/100 in his ten overs. But, there was really nothing too praise-worthy in the Kiwi bowling effort. Trent Boult returned with a wicket as well.
New Zealand’s response saw them fall short of 21 runs
New Zealand led a valiant effort to chase down a mammoth total. Daryl Mitchell with 134 off 119 remained their strongest batter. Skipper Kane Williamson’s 69 off 73 and Glenn Phillips’ 41 off 33 aside, no other Kiwi batter stood out. They ultimately succumbed to the Indian bowling attack at 327 within 48.5 overs.
Talking about India’s bowling attack, Mohammed Shami once again proved to be India’s rescue man. His figures of 7/57 in 9.5 overs was the match-winning X-factor the Men in Blue were looking for. He has supporting acts surrounding him in the form of Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj who returned with one wicket apiece from the game.
Here’s how fans reacted:
https://twitter.com/Marwadi99/status/1724834265358373110
Kambaht bumrah ko bhol he gayai
— Junaid KhaN (@JunaidKhaN62599) November 15, 2023
— Anshu Chauhan (@chauhandwarrior) November 15, 2023
https://twitter.com/AshTheWiz/status/1724834482887200822
— Amit Shah (Parody) (@Motabhai012) November 15, 2023
Shami will be awarded free one night stand with our admin, Armaan for having 6 wickets in this match from our side.
— बदहवासゞ (@badhwaas) November 15, 2023
https://twitter.com/Logical_Girll/status/1724834048089170109
https://twitter.com/DenissForReal/status/1724834437240938895
