New Zealand pray for rare Bumrah off-day
Cricket lovers worldwide await New Zealand’s Black Caps facing India’s Men in Blue in the ‘Manchester of India’ on March 8. Yet elite fielder Glenn Phillips views this ICC T20 World Cup final as a chance to play simple, quality cricket.
New Zealand arrive after a nine-wicket semi-final thrashing by South Africa, undaunted by India at Narendra Modi Stadium – a venue of bitter memories for Indian fans. Both teams navigated turbulent paths. New Zealand’s loss to England threatened semi-final hopes, but Pakistan’s defeat to Sri Lanka secured their spot. Against South Africa, Finn Allen hammered a record 33-ball century, supported by Tim Seifert’s 33-ball 58.
India, initial favourites, endured a 72-run Super 8 hammering by South Africa here, risking early exit. Sanju Samson’s return sparked revival, with wins over West Indies and England earning consecutive T20 finals.
“It was great watching last night’s India-England game. The batter-friendly pitch produced entertaining cricket. Conditions vary by stadium, so the final will differ,” said Phillips. He named Jasprit Bumrah his semi-final Man of the Match for superb bowling. “Bumrah is fantastic, with endless variations. He nails death overs. He’s human too – allowed off days, like us. Hopefully, we catch him on one,” Phillips added. “Bowlers miss; we capitalise. If he’s on, we adapt.”
Discussing various other factors, Phillips claimed that dew might play an important role in the final.
The Kiwi fielder also mentioned the kind of passion and talent the co-hosts of the tournament has in terms of building future.
“Cricket is cricket, everyone is giving their best for the country. We have got a few less people in our country, to have the luxury of choosing from, which means obviously our high performance programme has to be very specific and catered for the population that we've got,” said Phillips, who didn’t forget to mention about the crowd. Unlike England's Sam Curran, Phillips didn’t directly touch upon the nerves of Indian fans. “We expect them (fans) to be in good numbers and they deserve to enjoy the game. The talent that comes out of India is phenomenal. And, you know, they could probably pick three sides that would compete just as evenly in this World Cup. So for us to go out and compete with teams around the world, with such a small population is fantastic,” he added.
