Although New Zealand have not been at their best with the bat in this tournament, if they find form against India, any total can be posted and chased down by the Black Caps.
New Zealand players gather as they take part in a training session at Old Trafford in Manchester, north-west England on July 8, 2019, ahead of their 2019 Cricket World Cup semi-final match against India. (Photo by Dibyangshu Sarkar / AFP)
After a spectacular run in the league stage of the ongoing Cricket World Cup, India will look to take that confidence and momentum when they go on to meet New Zealand in the first semi-final of the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 on Tuesday.
India went to emerge as the table toppers post defeating Sri Lanka by seven wickets and South Africa beating the Aussies.
On the other hand, New Zealand were off to a great start to their World Cup campaign but their performance slumped as the tournament proceeded and they will come into the knockouts on the back of three consecutive defeats.
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However, despite being one of the best teams on display in the league stages, the Virat Kohli led side would not want to take the Kiwis lightly. They would remember that it was the same New Zealand team who had defeated them in the warm-up matches prior to the World Cup.
Moreover, the New Zealand pace attack is one that bowls with a lot of discipline and India should better play their best cricket on the day to emerge as a champion.
Although New Zealand have not been at their best with the bat in this tournament, if they find form against India, any total can be posted and chased down by the Black Caps.
It is also to be noted here that weather might play a spoilsport with rains being predicted on the match day in Manchester.
On that note, let us have a look at Dream XI and the Probable XIs for both the teams.
Dream XI: Lokesh Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (c), Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Hardik Pandya, Kane Williamson (c), Ross Taylor, Tom Latham (wk), Trent Boult, Lockie Ferguson
Note– The Dream XI listed here is based on the recent performances of the players
Probable Playing XIs
India: KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (c), Rishabh Pant, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah.
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Colin Munro, Kane Williamson (c), Ross Taylor, Tom Latham (wk), James Neesham, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult.
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