A stunning counterattacking innings from Ravindra Jadeja, when the chips were down, went in vain as India fell short by 18 runs against New Zealand in the thrilling first semifinal at Old Trafford.
With the heavy loss of early wickets — India were 5 for 3 — the asking rate kept increasing, but it was a big stand between Jadeja and MS Dhoni that gave India hope.
The match that went into the second day, due to rain, ended with Jadeja making 77 (59 balls) and Dhoni making 50 before he was run out in the 49th over.
New Zealand reached their second World Cup final and they will meet either England or Australia.
India was 150-6 and needing 90 more runs to win off the last 10 overs against New Zealand in the first Cricket World Cup semifinal.
MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja were sharing an excellent partnership for the seventh wicket and appeared to be India’s last hope at Old Trafford.
India were praying for a World Cup miracle from veteran batsman MS Dhoni after a stunning top-order collapse left them reeling in Wednesday's dramatic semifinal run-chase against New Zealand.
India lost key batsmen Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul for just one run each as they slumped to five for three and were 24 for four when Dinesh Karthik was out for six.
Hardik Pandya tried to steady the ship but when he fell for 32, India were 92 for six off 30.3 overs needing a further 148 runs to reach a victory target of 240 at Old Trafford.
Dhoni, India's captain when they won the 2011 World Cup on home soil, was then 10 not out.
(If you are viewing this on The Hindu app, click this link to open the scorecard in your browser)
New Zealand pacemen Matt Henry (three wickets for 23 runs in seven overs) and Trent Boult (1-15 in six) did the early damage.
They were helped by some fine fielding, Jimmy Neesham holding a superb one-handed catch at backward point to dismiss Karthik off Henry to leave India's bid to reach the final in turmoil.
Sharma began the procession of top-order dismissals when he edged a fine Henry delivery that curved away to wicketkeeper Tom Latham.
Kohli fell next, lbw to a superb inswinger from left-armer Boult.
Kohli reviewed but replays upheld English official Richard Illingworth's original out decision on umpire's call and, to the despair of the massed ranks of India fans in the ground, the star batsman had to go.
India were then five for three when Rahul was brilliantly caught by a diving Latham after edging Henry.
Slow runs
It was a Tuesday of slow runs, damp weather and the long wait. Under grim skies that made illuminated floodlights a mandatory accessory to the World Cup semifinal, India tightened the screws on New Zealand.
Old Trafford’s dry pitch was on the slower side and the niggardly Men in Blue restricted the Black Caps to 211 for five in 46.1 overs when a steady drizzle gained strength and forced umpires Richard Illingworth and Richard Kettleborough to stop play at 2 p.m. local time.
The rains that wavered between the feathery drops and the insistent pitter-patter, continued unabated till 4.15 p.m. when the sun grudgingly peeped out. While the match officials hoped for an extended dry phase so that India could commence an abridged chase with a revised target based on the Duckworth-Lewis Method, a fresh wet spell just as the umpires were inspecting the turf at 6.10 p.m., affected revival-plans.
Play is set to resume at the same stage today, a reserve day, weather permitting.
Read yesterday's match report here:
Preview
It has been a campaign in which Virat Kohli’s men have been successfully able to hide their chinks even without a suitable ‘Plan B’ but it now boils down to having two days and they don’t have an option of letting the script go awry.
The sub-plots promise to be fascinating — Rohit trying to hook a Lockie Ferguson bouncer, KL Rahul negotiating one from Trent Boult that could veer in, Kohli smashing Matt Henry all around.
The last five outings on the surface here favoured the team taking first strike including India which defeated Pakistan and the West Indies. The pitches have slowed down over the last fortnight and scoreboard-pressure becomes a raging beast at the last-four stage.
