Champions Trophy: Chakaravarthy’s Five-Wicket Haul Paves Way for India’s Semifinal Against Australia

Dubai, March 2 (NationPress) Varun Chakravarthy spearheaded India's efforts with an impressive 5-42, the top bowling figures in the current tournament, enabling India to triumph over New Zealand by 44 runs in the concluding Group A fixture at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday.

This victory positions India as the Group A leaders, setting up a semifinal clash against Australia in Dubai on Tuesday, marking a rematch of the 2023 ODI World Cup final. Meanwhile, New Zealand will face South Africa in the second semifinal at Gaddafi Stadium on Wednesday, with both teams traveling to Lahore on Monday.

Following Shreyas Iyer's 79, which guided India to 249/9 in 50 overs, Chakaravarthy bamboozled the New Zealand batsmen with his pace and variations, ultimately bowling them out for 205 in 45.3 overs.

For New Zealand, Kane Williamson fought valiantly with his score of 81 off 120 balls on a challenging pitch, relying on nudges and drives for boundaries. However, with India's spin quartet tightening the screws in the middle overs and claiming nine wickets, the match tilted in favor of Rohit Sharma & Co.

India nearly claimed their first wicket in the fourth over, but a dropped catch by Chakaravarthy off Hardik Pandya's bowling allowed Will Young to escape. Just four balls later, Pandya struck, dismissing Rachin Ravindra, who was caught at deep third.

Despite Young and Williamson striking some solid boundaries, India kept the pressure on, as New Zealand managed 44/1 in the first power-play. Chakaravarthy made his mark by bowling Young, who edged a googly onto his stumps.

With the Indian spinners turning the ball sharply, Williamson, who was given a lifeline on 32 by Chakaravarthy, and Mitchell played cautiously while notching occasional boundaries during their 44-run third-wicket partnership. Kuldeep Yadav eventually broke the partnership, trapping Mitchell lbw for 17.

Williamson reached his fifty off 77 balls by glancing Jadeja through fine leg for four, keeping New Zealand's chase alive with an inside-out drive against the spinner. Yet, Jadeja retaliated by bowling out Tom Latham lbw for 14.

Jadeja had an opportunity to dismiss Williamson on 68, but KL Rahul missed the catch. Nonetheless, Chakaravarthy took two wickets in quick succession, getting Glenn Phillips and Michael Bracewell lbw, though replays suggested the latter might have survived.

The match's outcome became inevitable when Williamson danced down the pitch to strike Axar over mid-on but was stumped easily by Rahul after scoring 81. Mitchell Santner contributed some late runs, finishing with 28 off 31 balls before Chakaravarthy claimed his fifth wicket, sealing the win for India.

Earlier, seamer Matt Henry excelled with 5-42, marking his third five-wicket haul in the 50-over format, as New Zealand restricted India to 249/9. The Blackcaps capitalized on the pitch conditions effectively to contain India.

Iyer rescued India from an early collapse with a well-played 79, supported by Axar Patel's 42. Despite New Zealand's excellent bowling in the latter overs, Hardik Pandya's run-a-ball 45 helped India post a challenging total.

Henry and Kyle Jamieson exploited the conditions to test the Indian batsmen with their seam and swing. Although Rohit Sharma hit Henry for a four and six, the seamer responded by trapping Shubman Gill lbw for just 2.

Jamieson then got in on the action, dismissing Rohit, who mistimed a pull for 15. Virat Kohli had a rocky start in his landmark 300th ODI, scoring two fortunate boundaries before he was caught out for 11.

With New Zealand’s spinners turning the ball significantly, India went 51 balls without a boundary until Axar swept Santner in the 16th over. Iyer then took the initiative, striking three boundaries off William O’Rourke, including two pulls and a drive over extra cover.

Iyer continued his impressive form, securing his 22nd ODI fifty in 75 balls, while Axar made some quick runs off Bracewell's off-spin. Their 98-run partnership ended when Axar was caught for 42.

Rahul got off the mark with a boundary before Iyer launched a couple of sixes, but he fell in the 37th over while attempting a pull off O’Rourke. Rahul soon followed, dismissed for 23 after edging a delivery from Santner.

Pandya and Jadeja initiated the slog phase by scoring off Bracewell before Hardik unleashed a flurry of runs in the final overs. Despite New Zealand's disciplined lengths, Pandya managed to score 15 runs in the penultimate over.

Henry dismissed both Hardik and Shami in the final over, securing his five-wicket haul and leaving India just shy of 250 runs, which proved insufficient for New Zealand to surpass.

Brief Scores: India 249/9 in 50 overs (Shreyas Iyer 79, Hardik Pandya 45; Matt Henry 5-42) defeated New Zealand 205 in 45.3 overs (Kane Williamson 81, Mitchell Santner 28; Varun Chakaravarthy 5-42, Kuldeep Yadav 2-56) by 44 runs