2016 T20 World Cup: New Zealand vs England Semi-Final Preview
The ICC World T20 has moved to the last four stage and the first semi-final will be played between New Zealand and England at Delhi on March 30. With both of these teams already doing better than expected, the stage is set for an exciting match.
England qualified for the semi-final after winning three of their Super10 Group I matches and finishing second in the group. They started with a loss against the West Indies but have been clinical since that game. The stunning chase against South Africa – a world T20 record of 230 – set the ball running from them culminating in the victory against Sri Lanka facilitated by tight end-over bowling by Chris Jordan and Ben Stokes.
The form of Jos Buttler and Joe Root has been key to England who have been one of the consistent high scoring teams of the tournament. The induction of Liam Plunkett has added a new injection of pace in bowling, along with Jordan and Stokes. But the spinning track of Delhi would place more emphasis on Moeen Ali and Adil Rasheed.
For New Zealand, the new beginning under Kane Williamson after the retirement of Brendon McCullum, started with a bang. No one expected the Black Caps to perform as admirably as they did, winning every league game of their Super10 Group II and finishing atop. Their spin bowling has been a revelation with Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi twirling the opposition in every game.
But the biggest worry for Williamson would be their batting which has struggled to post big scores – albeit on difficult surfaces. Martin Guptill hasn’t really shown his explosive side while Colin Munro at one drop seems happy to be anti-Munro; rotating strike than bludgeoning boundaries. The Semis could just be the platform to change the script.
On current form, New Zealand looks a good bet to progress to the finals. At odds of $1.80 at Sportsbet, the Kiwis are value for money. The England team were pushed hard by Afghanistan at this venue and they would need a strong performance from their top order to quell any doubts. Jason Roy could be a risk worth taking, to end up their best batsman. For the Kiwis, watch out for the maverick Guptill.
It will be an interesting matchup with the two unfancied teams trying to outwit each other. England had to rest on individual performances to pull them through, while for the Kiwis it was a complete team effort. Whom do you fancy to reach the finals?
