The match has been called off for the day. So, the two teams will resume action tomorrow (Wednesday). See you guys. I better rush off home. Got a long day ahead of me !
Here is the Match Scenario:
New Zealand will resume its innings and finish the remaining quota of 50 overs before India launches its pursuit in the World Cup semifinal at Old Trafford. However, rain is forecast for Wednesday and in the event of the game not lasting the distance either as a full match or as a truncated venture, the Men in Blue will qualify for the final based on their superior position in the league table. India is placed on top with 15 points while New Zealand (11) occupies the fourth spot.
Gaahh... Rains have returned!
The cut-off time is 11:05 pm IST. The groundsmen have about an hour to get the ground ready for play.
We are told there will be an inspection at 6 PM (BST), 10:30 pm IST.
Heavy showers have returned. Look like this one's going into the reserve day!
Damn! The rains have returned. And the wait continues... We have started losing overs now.
It has stopped raining. The supersoppers are doingtheir job. We will start losing overs after 9:00 pm (IST).
It's still drizzling in Manchester. No let up yet. Meanwhile, while the fans continue to debate the Bhuvneshwar-Shami selection conundrum. Here is a look at their ODI numbers :
Mohammad Shami at CWC19: 14 wickets in 4 matches, SR of 15, ER 5.48
Bhuvneshwar Kumar at CWC19: 7 wickets in 5 matches, SR of 35.7, ER 5.13*
K.C. Vijaya Kumar pings from Manchester: "Not a downpour, just a heavy drizzle."
Rains have halted play in Manchester. the entire square is under covers, and so is the pitch! We can wait until two hours before losing overs.
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Bumrah returns into the attack. Seven runs from the over including a rather comical three runs off overthrows! Bhuvi to continue.
Taylor has been given out lbw off Bhuvi. He reviews. The impact's outside the line of off stump and he survives! But CDG isn't lucky enough! He is out caught behind and Bhuvi breaks the partnership. By the way the Kiwis have brought up their 200. Tom Latham comes to the crease. Five from the over. NZ 202/5 after 45.
SHOT! Right in the slot for Taylor, who slog sweeps it for six t bring up his fifty. FOUR! Taylor's turning it on against Chahal, pummels a boundary through the leg-side now. Chahal responds with a wide. CDG finishes the over with a boundary. 18 from the over. Chahal: 10-0-63-1. NZ 197/4 after 44.
Colin de Grandhomme comes to the crease. Chahal's back into the attack. CDG ends the over with a streaky brace. Eight runs from the over. Hardik to bowl out. Nine off the last over. NZ 179/4 after 43 overs.
Pandya into his ninth over. Short ball. Short ball. Sequence of first two deliveries. This one's slightly fuller and Neesham mistimes a pull to gully for a single. Four, is it? Yes! Neesham gets one over Pandya, pulls one to backward square-leg for four . GONE! Neesham perishes next ball. DK completes a simple catch. NZ 162/4 after 41 overs.
Bumrah is back. Over no. 7 for the seamer. Another parsimonious over from BOOM! Just four from it. At the end of the second Powerplay, NZ are 155/3 after 40 overs.
Bhuvi continues. Taylor off strike with a single to deep square-leg. The wicket's slightly on the slower side. Chasing anything above 250 won't be easy. Indian bowlers have done well, but they need to finish on a high. Taylor, though out of form, can be extremely dangerous once he gets going. Neesham's no mug with the bat. Six runs from the over. NZ 151/3 after 39 overs.
An eventful Pandya over comes to an end. Rohit should've held on to that catch of Neesham. That will go down as a dropped chance. Other than that, Hardik used his short ball ploy generously and it worked with a change of pace. NZ 145/3 after 38 overs.
Bhuvi returns into the attack. He was taken to the cleaners by the Lankan batsmen in the last match, especially in the death overs. Can he hold his nerve? Kohli has a slip for Neesham. Two singles and a couple from the over. NZ 140/3 after 37 overs.
BIG WICKET! Williamson departs and Chahal gets the breakthrough. The pressure created by Jaddu and Bumrah pays dividends. Jimmy Neesham comes to the crease. Slip and leg-slip in place. Three runs and a wicket from it. NZ 136/3 after 36 overs.
Jadeja, now, bowls a one-run over. He's just got one more over left. NZ 122/2 after 33. DRINKS! Bumrah bowls another tight over. Just three coming off it. Jadeja to bowl out. SHOT! Williamson decides to up the ante... sweeps one over deep mid-wicket for four. Slog sweep executed to perfection. NZ 133/2 after 35 overs. Jadeja: 10-0-34-1.
Bumrah back into the attack. Williamson guides the first delivery to third-man for a single. Edged! and safe. Lands just short, did it? Hang on. Looked like a drop. Taylor survives. That's why he's the best bowler going around international cricket at the moment. Five dots. Just one off the over. NZ 121/2 after 32 overs.
The 50-run stand comes up with a streaky hit from Taylor. The slower, short ball has been his bread and butter delivery for Hardik who hurried Williamson with a bouncer first ball - the batsman got a top edge that ran away for four. Just a single from the final ball. NZ 120/2 after 31 overs.
That's the 39th ODI fifty for Williamson. He gets there with a single off Chahal. FOUR! Taylor sweeps a leg-stump ball for his second four in 35 balls. Good over for the Kiwis. Eight runs coming from it. NZ 113/2 after 30 overs.
100 up for the Kiwis with that Williamson single off Pandya. Hardik gets away with a leg-side freebie and bowls a short one next ball. It's called a wide. Williamson collects a brace with a drive to sweeper-cover. NZ 105/2 after 29 overs. The partnership between the two is now 36.
FOUR! Williamson slog sweeps and earns NZ's first boundary since the 14th over. They need plenty more of those to keep the scoreboard ticking. Another boundary .. Ross Taylor finishes off with a boundary to third-man. 10 from the over. NZ 99/2 after 28 overs.
Hardik Pandya comes into the attack. India have kept the lid on the scoring. No boundary in the last 12 overs ! The duo's dealing in singles at the moment. Four singles from the over. NZ 89/2 after 27 overs.
Stifled appeal for lbw. Not given. That looked close. India don't have a review left. Taylor missed that slider from Chahal and was struck on the pads. Replays show the ball just clipping the stumps. So, umpire's call. Just two from the over. NZ 85/2 after 26 overs.
Jaddu into his eighth over! Still a slip in place. Hardik is back on the field. Four dots. A single at last. It'll remain just a one off the over. Jadeja's economy rate becomes more impressive: 3.13. NZ 83/2 at the halfway stage.
Chahal is enjoying bowling on this wicket. Pitches one on off and gets the ball to turn past Taylor's defence. Another dot follows before Taylor finally gets off strike with a single to long-off. Meanwhile, Jaddu's economy rate is 3.43! A single to end the over. NZ 82/2 after 24 overs.
Three runs from Chahal's third. Taylor and Williamson need to summon all their experience. Testing phase of play for the Kiwis. Seventh over for Jaddu. And another economical one for Jaddu. Two singles off it. NZ 79/2 after 23 overs.
Jadeja continues. He's rushing through his overs, is Jaddu. He's into his sixth over already. Three dots and concedes a single to long-off for Williamson. Another good over from the left-armer. Just one from it. NZ 74/2 after 21 overs.
This has been a good over from Chahal. Started with a wide again but got his radar back immediately after. He flights the ball and gets one to turn square. Remember, NZ are playing just one tweaker. Anyway, two from that over. NZ 73/2 after 20 overs.
GONE! Jadeja's golden arm strikes. Turn and bounce and the ball clatters into the stumps. Nicholls departs. The nagging 68-run stand has come to an end. Ross Taylor comes to the crease. A ripper to end the over. Sharp turn and bounce. NZ 70/2 after 19 overs.
Jadeja to continue. Slip in place. Williamson collects a three by threading the gap between extra-cover and long-off. Just a single off the remaining deliveries. In comes Chahal. He concedes five wides first ball. Mayank Agarwal on the field for Hardik. Eight runs from the over. Nicholls and Williamson are firming up. NZ 69/1 after 18 overs.
Close... Hardik digs one short and Nicholls misses it trying to go for the pull. Another short delivery and this time it's wide and Nicholls throws the kitchen sink at it but misses! Both have been called wides by the way. Pandya mixes it up nicely - back of a length followed by a teasing full length ball. Whoa! Jaddu is lightening fast on the field... saves a certain single. NZ 57/1 after 16 overs. Hardik could be seen grimacing in pain there, looks like a thigh strain. He's off the field now.
Eight runs from that Hardik over. Williamson ends the over with a boundary to square of third-man, where Chahal lets the ball pass through. 50 up for New Zealand. Three runs from Jaddu's over now. The fifty partnership, too, comes up. NZ 55/1 after 15 overs.
Jaddu is getting the ball to turn. He has been picked ahead of Kuldeep, who has a very good record against the Kiwis. Nicholls works one to fine leg for a brace and follows it up with a single. Slip's back for Williamson. The batsmen steal a second run off an overthrow. NZ 44/1 after 13 overs.
Pandya continues. Beats Williamson's edge first ball. That was dug in back of a length and Kane was caught on the backfoot. Three dots and the fourth delivery doesn't quite climb and Williamson pulls it away for four. NZ 38/1 after 12 overs.
Left-arm spinner Jadeja into the attack. A slip in place for Williamson. Loud appeal for lbw given not out by the umpire. That one skid through and hit him on the pads. Would've been umpire's call. Next ball, Nicholls sweeps one to fine-leg for four. NZ 34/1 after 11 overs.
Hardik Pandya has been brought into the attack. Williamson hares back for what looked like a risky second. Nicholls is getting restless here. Plays out three dots including a wide. He's batting on 10. And he'll remain on 10. A dot to end the over. End of the first Powerplay. NZ 27/1 after 10 overs.
Bhuvi continues. FOUR! Williamson presents the full face of his bat and the ball races away for four. Chaha's chase in vain. Good comeback from the bowler. Three dots and a single follow. NZ 23/1 after 9 overs.
Nicholls is struggling to get going against this pacy, accurate duo of Bumrah and Bhuvi. Manages to fend off a short ball for a single. Nicholls finally gets one over Bumrah, scythes a full length delivery through the covers for his first boundary. This after he is beaten all ends up by a jaffa! From round the wicket, Bumrah gets the ball to move away off a good length. NZ 18/1 after 8 overs.
Bhuvi continues. One slip for him... actually the second slip has gone a bit wider. It's Kohli standing wide. Fine save from Jadeja, saved a certain boundary there. Just a brace from Williamson from that over. NZ 10/1 after 7 overs.
Bumrah into his third over. He has gobe for just one run so far. Gully still in place for Williamson. A word on India's fielding: they've pretty proactive so far. No slip-ups yet. Good to see this kind of energy. Bumrah's landing it around that back of a length region. Another excellent over. NZ 8/1 after 6 overs.
Bhuvi to continue. India on the prowl as the two slips remain. These two have to see off the new ball. It's a good wicket to bat on... but the overcast conditions are in India's favour for the time being. Five runs from the over. NZ 7/1 after 5 overs.
Bumrah cranking it up at the other end. He's getting steep bounce from short of a length. GONE! Pressure tells on Guptill. E dges one to the slips and India have the first breakthrough. That was a brilliant catch from Kohli. Kane Williamson walks in at 3. Kohli brings in an extra catcher - a gully for Kane. Williamson's off for a single. NZ 2/1 after 4 overs.
Still two slips. Bhuvi continues. Fuller length ball, shaping into the right-hander. No run. Follows it up with a slower ball and Guptill checks the punch to cover. Two dots follow. Guptill tucks one square of the wicket for his first run. Nicholls play out yet another dot. NZ 1/0 after 3 overs.
Bumrah to share the new ball. Two slips for Nicholls. Right on the money, slanting the ball away from the left-hander at good pace. Three dots. Still no runs on the board. Nervous start. Another maiden, first one for Bumrah. NZ 0/0 after 2 overs.
India have gone for a lbw review against Guptill! And the ball is missing the leg-stump. Kohli and Co. have lost their review first ball. Two slips in place for the right-hander. Coming back to the first ball, Bhuvi brings the it back into the right-hander. That looked not out to the naked eye. Brilliant start from Bhuvi - maiden first up. IND 0/0 after 1 over.
Out come the teams for the respective national anthems. New Zealand first, followed by second. Martin Guptill and Henry Nicholls to open the innings. Bhuvi to start proceedings with the new ball.
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Amol Karhadkar : Not too sure why Bhuvneshwar was preferred over Shami for the semifinal. Yes, Shami did have one bad game. Yes, Bhuvneshwar is the safer of the two and he has historically been better at the death than Shami. But Shami has picked wickets so consistently in his four outings that it is startling to see him benched for the big game. Add to that the fact the Bhuvneshwar hasn’t been at his best all through the league stage and India could well hope that they don’t have to regret this decision for years.
TOSS UPDATE| New Zealand has won the toss and elected to bat.
India (Playing XI): Lokesh Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli(c), Rishabh Pant, MS Dhoni(w), Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah
New Zealand (Playing XI) : Martin Guptill, Henry Nicholls, Kane Williamson(c), Ross Taylor, Tom Latham(w), James Neesham, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Trent Boult
Virat Kohli | "It's going to remain similar throughout the course of the game. Weve played really good cricket in Manchester, two good games, and it's about focussing on the basics. We need to remember why we are in the semis. Chahal comes back in for Kuldeep Yadav."
Kane Williamson| "We're going to have a bat. It looks like a good surface. We have played a number of games here. A toss-up with the overheads, but it'll be around all day, so we need to get the job first up. We are used to the routine, but we have a great opportunity to put up a good performance against a side like India. Ferguson comes in for Southee."
PITCH REPORT| "Even though it's overcast, the wicket looks dry. It's a fresh wicket, and it's definitely a bat-first wicket. It's a semifinal, there will be a lot of scoreboard pressure," reckons VVS Laxman.
Meanwhile, the Old Trafford stadium has been made a “no fly zone” for India’s semifinal clash against New Zealand today. More here | Old Trafford airspace to remain shut, ECB informs BCCI
Wondering whether rains will play spoilsport in India's semifinal match? Fret not, we have you covered | LIVE Updates: Cloudy skies over Old Trafford, no showers yet
Former New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori has heaped praise on Jasprit Bumrah, saying the Indian speedster is bowling exceedingly well in the ongoing World Cup and is “basically unplayable at this stage”| Bumrah is unplayable at this stage, says Vettori
The teams batting first in World Cup 2019 have won 27 of the 41 completed matches, with four games being called off due to rain. Here's why toss will be important for Kohli | Why toss is important for Kohli in Manchester
The form of Rohit Sharma and K.L. Rahul up top followed by M.S. Dhoni's ability to absorb pressure will be key to India's chances in the World Cup 2019 semifinal against New Zealand| Kohli and Co.'s action plan for semifinal glory against the Kiwis
Rohit Sharma has already scored 647 runs from nine matches and is likely to go past Tendulkar's record for the highest number of runs in a single World - 673| Rohit Sharma eyes Tendulkar's record for most runs in a World Cup
Blue skies turned dull, cottony tufts of clouds sauntered in but the sun was out too at Old Trafford which geared up for Tuesday’s World Cup semifinal pitting India against New Zealand.
Here's K.C. Vijaya Kumar's match preview
A drizzle has been forecast, perhaps the rain gods are being naughty after having draped a wet curtain on the league fixture between the rivals at Nottingham’s Trent Bridge on June 13.
The weather isn’t exactly a cause for alarm plus there is a reserve day too though rains are predicted for Wednesday. Monday, not the manic one usually seen at Wimbledon, essentially was about the two teams putting a lid on big-game angst. India had optional training and the work-outs were more about relaxing the limbs than exerting them.
READ| Whoever handles pressure will come out on top, says Kohli
Mohammed Shami tried placing an energy drink bottle on Patrick Farhat’s bald head and the physio squirmed. M.S. Dhoni, padded up for a batting stint, couldn’t resist a kick when he sighted a football. Fun was the underlying theme but fielding coach R. Sridhar meant business as he made Kuldeep Yadav and Rishabh Pant run towards each other while taking high catches. The plan was to fine-tune the “it’s mine” calls in the deep as in the last game involving Sri Lanka, Yadav and Hardik Pandya nearly collided.
Punching above weight
New Zealand turned up later in the afternoon and the happy bunch at full strength bantered away besides practising. Again the focus was to keep the mind and body fresh ahead of a knockout clash. India is the tournament’s form-team and New Zealand remains the underdog that has always punched above its weight. We are talking about a unit that stays deceptive and lasts the course like it did in the 2015 edition where it finished runner-up.
The Black Caps will lean on its batting duo of skipper Kane Williamson (481 runs so far) and Ross Taylor besides all-rounder James Neesham. Its seam attack that includes Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson, Neesham and Matt Henry can be a handful especially if the atmosphere turns moist. Left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner may not have got too many wickets but has kept it tight. New Zealand lost its last three contests but the squad cannot be taken for granted.
READ| Light showers forecast for Old Trafford on Ind vs NZ match day
Riding the momentum
Virat Kohli will remember that his opponent had prevailed by six wickets in the warm-up joust at the Oval on May 25. Since then India gained heft, defeated Bangladesh in a practice skirmish and enjoyed a red-hot streak barring a loss to England. Momentum, that magical thing that skippers talk about, vests with the Men in Blue.
Rohit Sharma’s mountain of runs (647) inclusive of five centuries and the staggering support he found in K.L. Rahul and Kohli have helped India cope with a middle-order that hasn’t exactly lit up the charts. Pandya, Pant and Dhoni had their moments and the first-named has become the prime distributor of sixes while Dinesh Karthik is still feeling his way.
READ| World Cup 2019 India vs New Zealand semifinal reserve day: All you need to know
Primarily what helps Kohli is the knowledge that he has excellent speedsters with Jasprit Bumrah and Shami leading the way while Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s expensive phase against Sri Lanka may be deemed an aberration. It remains to be seen if Kohli will retain Ravindra Jadeja and perhaps bring in one among the wrist spinners – Yuzvendra Chahal and Yadav.
The last five outings on the surface here favoured the team taking the first strike including India which defeated Pakistan and the West Indies. The pitches have slowed down over the last fortnight and scoreboard-pressure becomes a raging beast at the last-four stage. The toss will be interesting but Kohli's men would like to believe that they are fully prepared.
Hello and welcome to Sportstar's live coverage of the first World Cup 2019 semifinal match between India and New Zealand at Old Trafford in Manchester.
The match will be streamed live on Hotstar.
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