New Delhi [India] : Renowned commentator, Harsha Bhogle feels that India are in a better spot to lift the World Cup than they were in the past two editions and the most ideal thing to do after winning the toss would be to bat.
The 2019 World Cup semi-final clash is about to unfold as India are once again destined to face New Zealand in the ongoing tournament on Wednesday.
India have asserted their dominance in the tournament by registering nine consecutive victories to top the table and clinch a semi-final spot. The way Men in Blue are performing, they will back themselves to lift the Cup for the third time as they have done in n 1983 and 2011.
But one fact that has been constant in the past two editions of the World Cup has been that the Indian team went unbeaten in the semi-final and ended up losing on both occasions. But this time Bhogle feels that India are in a strong position to defeat New Zealand in the semi-finals at Wankhede and eventually go on and claim a third title.
Bhogle talked about the Wankhede pitch and the ideal option to chose after winning the toss and in the ICC Review Podcast, “I wonder with a fair bit of cricket (at Wankhede Stadium) recently whether it will grip a bit and If it does then it is a big advantage for India. Funnily, at the Wankhede, the toss has become a big factor because under the lights in the first 10 overs the ball is doing alarming things. Seventeen wickets have fallen in four games in the first 10 overs. The ideal recipe there would be to bat first, make 330 or 340 and try and pick up two or three wickets in the first Powerplay. India should fancy their chances.”
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan, Prasidh Krishna, Suryakumar Yadav.
New Zealand squad: Kane Williamson (c), Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitch Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Will Young.