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India focused on ‘getting the job done’
AGENCIES
India men’s cricket team haven’t reached any of the last five finals in ICC white-ball World Cups, while New Zealand have never won one, despite reaching three finals in seven years. Something has to give when they meet at the 2023 World Cup semifinal in Mumbai today.
India versus New Zealand is a mouth-watering prospect as the first semifinal of the tournament throws up a repeat of the 2019 semi at Old Trafford in Manchester in which the Kiwis denied India in a nail-biting classic.
However, India captain Rohit Sharma insisted his side’s record of big game defeats by New Zealand was “all in the past”.
India’s progression to this semifinal has been even more serene than it was in England four years ago, with Rohit Sharma’s side winning all nine games and rarely even looking like being challenged on their path to the knockout stages.
History beckons for an India side who are looking for a first major tournament win in 12 years, and where better for this semifinal to be held than at the venue where India won their last World Cup back in 2011.
Tournament hosts India head into Wednesday’s showpiece match at opening batter Rohit’s Wankhede Stadium home ground.
But four years ago a team featuring several of the same players, including Rohit and star batter Virat Kohli, were members of an India side that suffered an agonising 18-run defeat by New Zealand in a rain-affected World Cup semifinal spanning two days in Manchester.
New Zealand also defeated India in the inaugural 2021 World Test Championship final.
The build-up to Wednesday’s game has seen much speculation about whether Rohit’s men can go on to lift India’s third World Cup or whether New Zealand, who gave India a run for their money before going down by four wickets in pool play, will prove their downfall once again.
Rohit, however, insisted his focus was firmly on the here and now.
“That’s the beauty of this team,” he told a pre-match press conference on Tuesday.
“None of the guys were born when we won our first World Cup and then, when we won our second World Cup in 2011, half of the guys were not even playing the game.”
He added: “This current crop of players is very much into what is happening today, what can happen tomorrow...The focus is on how they can get better as a player, what they can bring to the team, and the things they can improve.”
Rohit said while a semifinal was a high-pressure situation, his side were always under intense scrutiny in cricket-crazy India.
“If you are an Indian cricketer, then whatever the format, whatever the tournament, there is always pressure. Because you hear the same voice from everywhere that we have to win the match tomorrow...So, I think in terms of pressure, it becomes mandatory for Indian cricketers,” he added.
Before this World Cup, Rohit spoke about having “unfinished business”, with the 36-year-old saying Wednesday: “Now it’s just about business, the pure business of getting the job done for the team.”