New Zealand have well and truly become a consistent and dominating force in global events as they are targeting a third consecutive World Cup final by beating hosts and tournament favorites India at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai Wednesday.
India are enjoying a tremendous run of form, winning all nine games in the group stage, but when the opposition is New Zealand in the knockout phase, there is not the slightest of chance to relax.
The Black Caps played against Australia in the 2015 final in Melbourne and against England in the 2019 final at Lord’s.
The Kiwis came up short in both the grand finales and the last one, in 2019, turned out to be an all-time classic where New Zealand lost out after a Super Over tie where England won by virtue of scoring more boundaries.
Kane Williamson was the skipper then during that final and he is leading the team in this edition as well.
Compared to 2019, the semi-final plot is kind of similar for the Kiwis in the sense that they defeated India in that rain-marred tie in Manchester where the Indians had massive crowd support.
Williamson was seen giving a small motivational speech or "pep talk" Monday evening under the lights at Wankhede.
And the charismatic Kiwi captain looks determined to reach another final with confident New Zealand team a nice blend of youth and experience.
The first semi-final is poised to be a run-fest as Wankhede matches have produced big scores in this tournament.
Like the last World Cup semi-final in Manchester, the whole stadium will be roaring for the men in blue.
India have the added advantage of the home crowd but when the opposition is New Zealand in the World Cup, the home side have to bring out their A game.
The second semi-final, between five-time champions Australia and South Africa, will be held Thursday at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
The final is scheduled to be hosted by the world’s largest cricket stadium in Ahmedabad Sunday.