Trent Boult embraced the ‘mayhem’ as New Zealand’s opening bowlers produced a stunning spell to book their place in the World Cup final.
Set 240 to win, India’s top order was sent reeling as Matt Henry, with three wickets, and Boult with one left the world’s number two side flailing at 24 for four.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Ravindra Jadeja and MS Dhoni’s partnership put the game back in the balance but it was Boult and Henry’s new ball brilliance that proved decisive.
“It was mayhem out there with the new ball, it was a dream start for us and great fun to be a part of,” said Boult, who has taken 17 wickets in 10 matches.
“We knew our best balls are good enough for anyone, so it was nice to get the ball moving around and really put the pressure on them.
“They absorbed the pressure nicely and anything can happen with Dhoni and Jadeja at the crease, so it’s just nice to come out on the right side.
“We’re just excited about playing in a World Cup final at Lord’s - it doesn’t get bigger than that and whoever we play, we’ll just enjoy it.
“I think we are good enough to beat anyone. Every side is stacked with good players but we can’t wait to be out there on the big dance.”
Henry’s figures of three for 37 were not a career-best but were certainly career defining, with the top order scalps of Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Dinesh Karthik earning him man of the match honours.
“Semifinals are a special opportunity. We knew it would be tough for them if we took early wickets and that gave us the platform we needed,” said Henry.
“We wanted to get on top and put them under pressure. India have a world-class batting line-up and to break that opening partnership was huge.
“They bat a long way down and the work wasn’t done after the first ten overs. We knew they would establish a partnership and we had to control the run rate.
“We’ve been faced with so many challenges through this tournament, we just had to focus on our brand of cricket and trust the match winners we have in our dressing room.
“Whatever happened in the past didn’t really matter.”
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