Mumbai: It is yesterday once more, though at a different venue, in a different spirit and on India’s home ground where the 2019 Manchester semifinal heartbreak may, just may, be washed away by the high tide of the Rohit Sharma and Co high-performance index in this World Cup.
Indeed, a lot of the Arabian Sea waves have crashed with ferocity against the Marine Drive boulders in the last four years, only to recede and enjoy the show tomorrow at the iconic Wankhede stadium when India meets New Zealand for a World Cup semifinal clash that the hosts have strode into undefeated.
The two dirty R words – revenge or repeat – have been punctuating the speculatory chirp that follows Team India all through. But in the dressing rooms of the two teams vying for a spot in the final, keen strategy, introspection, clinical analysis of the opposition, dint of merit and the determination to reach Motera would have long thrown out fluffy conjecture that gives cricket its off-field heady syrup.
On paper in this World Cup, India has reached Mumbai after soundly defeating the Kiwis at Dharamsala despite the debutant sensation Rachin Ravindra’s quickfire 77 and Daryl Mitchell’s century under the majestic Himalayas. In the beach city of Mumbai, what will wash ashore will be decided by the toss and how conditions are exploited by Sharma at his home ground and Williamson who led his team to Lord’s in 2019, in marking rocket scores and unleashing the arm in defence.
Of course, the glorious uncertainties have always been the unwelcome factor which means "play on the day" will continue to be mentioned in captains talks even as the thought among India’s top five would be to build on the all-50 plus kind of sorted scoring at Bengaluru just the other day.
The Kiwis, who have been trying to retrieve spirits from the big hole created due to their frontline quick Matt Henry returning home with an injury, would have long lap-topped the Indian arm dazzler that routed them in Dharamsala, especially sitting down Kane Williamson and Matt Henry replacement Tim Southee in their analysis classes.
Southee can be no less dangerous, going by his knowledge of Indian conditions and the experience he has gathered with scalp collection over the years.
Mitchell Santner, the spin doctor, has been a danger man for so many years that tackling him would have been practised by the Indian batters at nets and in talk sessions, especially in the backdrop of the Indian willow getting a little alienated with the twists and turns of spin bowling in recent years.
At Dharamsala, Mitchell Santner finished 1 for 37 in his 10-over spell. In 2019, at one stage, he had 2 for 7 runs in six overs, picking up Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya. And then there is Lockie Ferguson with his retro looks, moustache and conservative bowling which constricts batters to an extent that they are compelled to take risks against Santner.
With Rohit Sharma doing a Jayasurya to turn the show into flying first overs before handing over the baton to cemented builders Virat Kohli- Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul, Lockie Ferguson will be on the lookout for stemming the tide.
Last time against Sri Lanka on this ground, Rohit Sharma departed cheaply when Dilshan Madhushanka dismissed him in the second ball of the innings. However, India recorded its first 300-plus score and the second-biggest victory margin on this ground.
This time round, the opposition is trickier as Kiwis are known to be coolly dogged in their approach to both life and the cricket they play. Their penchant to follow procedure, quick adaptability to conditions and situations and a golden generation of cricketers not willing to be overawed by either a lionised team or the sound pressure from the stands, will have to be tackled like a firefighting operation by Sharma and his mates.
All has been said about the Indian stride in this edition of the World Cup and it’s been so searingly positive that law of averages talk has been spotting the brilliant outing by batsmen but more by the Indian bowling unit. Pack hunters as quicks and slow nibblers of the middle order, there has been no bad days they’ve had. The cutting edge has been added by the return of the master assassin Mohammed Shami who has two five-for in the tournament and a vertical rise in the unprecedented number of wickets he has taken.
His first ball wicket of Will Young and his first five-for of the tournament in Dharamsala, not to mention his 16 wickets in just four outings after he rose from the bench, is stuff for cricketing folklore. Add to that Rohit Sharma’s firepower, Virat Kohli’s flourish, Jasprit Bumrah’s Shylockian mindset and Shreyas Iyer-KL Rahul’s quit but fast build-ups – and you have a unit with the wherewithal to stand taller than Kiwi perseverance, pace and guile.
At Wankhede, expect a titanic clash with neither Blue or Black giving an inch on the 22-yard on a ground that gave Team India its first home Cup 12 years ago.
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