Shamik Chakrabarty in Dubai
Tom Latham went for a reverse sweep against Ravindra Jadeja, missed the ball and was stuck right in front of the stumps. He didn’t review the on-field decision and trudged off. New Zealand were into the 33rd over in their chase and they had lost their fourth wicket.
Coming into this game, Latham had scores of 118 not out and 55 in the Champions Trophy, against Pakistan and Bangladesh, respectively. He was a reason why the Kiwis handled the middle overs so well in those matches. From India’s point of view, it was important to get rid of the in-form player. It also broke the right-left combination in the middle. After 33 overs, New Zealand were 137/4, chasing 250 for victory. The game became wide open.
The required rate was touching seven, and on a sluggish pitch where the ball was gripping, it wasn’t an easy task against a quality spin attack. The mood at Dubai International Stadium until then was a tad subdued. The fans suddenly found their voice.
Ravindra Jadeja, accuracy personified, was strangulating the opponents from one end. Very smartly, Rohit Sharma brought on Varun Chakravarthy from the other. The latter is bound to divide opinion. He is a liability in the field, but a craftsman with the ball. Playing him is fraught with risk, for he is prone to occasional errors while fielding and letting go of tough chances. But Varun is a match-winner, an “X-factor”, going by head coach Gautam Gambhir.
How does Varun stay so expressionless? The question has to be asked. New Zealand, though, learnt quickly that looks can be deceptive. Glenn Phillips decided to take on the spinner, hitting a six over deep square-leg. Varun’s riposte was a wrong’un that drifted in the air and came in sharply from outside off. Phillips was caught in no-man’s land. He didn’t even bother reviewing the leg-before decision.
Michael Bracewell, however, missed a trick when he decided not to review the on-field LBW call. Varun had bowled it flatter, and the ball didn’t turn, going with the angle instead. It hit the pad first all right, but the decision looked doubtful. Bracewell had a word with Kane Williamson and decided not to review. Replays showed the ball was missing off stump. New Zealand were 159/6, and Varun had his third wicket in his first game in the Champions Trophy. He would end up with 5/42 from 10 overs and take the Player-of-the-Match award.
At the other end, Williamson (81) was giving a masterclass of playing spin on a difficult surface, a couple of reprieves notwithstanding. He was trying to take the game deep, but the required run rate soared over nine and the former captain decided to give Axar Patel a charge. The latter anticipated it, bowled an arm-ball and flummoxed Williamson. KL Rahul effected one of the easiest stumpings the game could offer.
India altered their winning combination, Varun coming in Harshit Rana. For the first time ever, India went with a four-pronged spin attack in an ODI. Collectively, the four tweakers accounted for nine New Zealand wickets, giving away 166 runs. The Indian team management read the conditions perfectly and they revelled in a tactical masterclass.
Earlier, Shreyas Iyer top-scored for India with 79 off 98 balls. He steadied the ship via a 98-run fourth-wicket partnership with Axar after the first three wickets fell for 30 runs. In his 300th ODI, Virat Kohli (11) fell prey to a stunning catch from Phillips. Williamson took another blinder to dismiss Jadeja. The BLACKCAPS saved at least 20-25 runs in the field to restrict India to 249/9. Matt Henry returned with 5/42.
In the end, though, they lost by 44 runs. The evening belonged to Varun.
For the record, India topped the group and will play Australia in the first semi-final here on Tuesday.
The post Varun’s five-for, India’s tactical masterclass sink Kiwis appeared first on Sports News Portal | Latest Sports Articles | Revsports.
