NEW DELHI: India continuing their unbeaten run in the ICC World Cup 2023 with a win over New Zealand on Sunday earned them the tag of "unstoppable" by the legendary Pakistan fast bowler Wasim Akram, who sang praises of Rohit Sharma & Co on the news channel 'A Sports'.
Led by 'Chase Master' Virat Kohli's 95 and Mohammed Shami's five-wicket haul (5/54), India defeated New Zealand in a top-of-the-table clash in Dharamsala to win by four wickets.
The victory was India's fifth in a row in the tournament, which put them on top of the leaderboard with 10 points. It was New Zealand's first defeat of this World Cup after four straight victories, and they are now No. 2.
"India is like that run-away train that has its brakes failed. They are going that way," said Akram. "They have the weapons, have the merit, the skills and most importantly they know how to execute their plans."
New Zealand put up a challenging 273 on the board, which could have been a lot more had Shami not bowled a terrific spell in the death overs.
Led by Shami's effort, India restricted New Zealand to 54 runs in their last 10 overs while taking six wickets despite Daryl Mitchell's century (130). Mitchell also added 159 runs for the third wicket with Rachin Ravindra (75).
But Kohli's sublime knock and useful contributions from Rohit Sharma (46), Shreyas Iyer (33), Shubman Gill (26) and KL Rahul (27) kept New Zealand bowlers at bay.
1/10:World Cup: Kohli hits 95 as unbeaten India down New Zealand
2/10:Chasemaster Kohli
<p>Virat Kohli led India to a four-wicket victory over New Zealand in the World Cup with a remarkable innings of 95.</p>ANI
3/10:Kohli missed Tendulkar's record
<p>Virat Kohli narrowly missed equalling Sachin Tendulkar's record of 49 one-day international centuries.</p>Reuters
4/10:Shami strikes on his return
<p>Mohammed Shami was the star bowler for India, taking 5-54, helping to bowl New Zealand out for 273.</p>Reuters
5/10:Five wins on the trot
<p>India chased down the target with 12 balls to spare in Dharamsala, securing their fifth win in five World Cup matches.</p>PTI
6/10:Mitchell's terrific knock
<p>New Zealand, with Daryl Mitchell's brilliant 130, posted 273, but suffered their first loss in the tournament.</p>AFP
7/10:Crucial partnership
<p>Kohli's superb form was evident as he led partnerships, including a vital 78-run stand with Ravindra Jadeja.</p>AP
8/10:No 49th ton for Kohli
<p>Kohli's innings was terminated at 95 by Matt Henry, just five runs short of his 49th ODI century.</p>ANI
9/10:India batters shine
<p>The match also featured strong contributions from Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, and Shreyas Iyer.</p>AP
10/10:Shami's fifer made the difference
<p>Mohammed Shami's five-wicket haul played a pivotal role in India's victory, containing New Zealand's scoring in the final 10 overs.</p>Akram said India is a complete team with quality replacements at their disposal. With Hardik not available, the Indian think-tank had to tinker with the combination they fielded for the match.
"They did one change according to the situation. Squads should be such, like India and New Zealand's, so that if anybody is injured or out of touch or you want to play someone according to opposition or pitch (then you have such resources available). Like India played Shami, Hardik was injured, they dropped Shardul (Thakur), SKY (Suryakumar Yadav) was brought in as a new batter. Then Shami got a wicket off the first ball of his spell," said Akram.
While chasing, India were in a slight spot of bother at 191/5, but Ravindra Jadeja's unbeaten 39 off 44 balls ensured that the hosts did not miss Hardik, who was ruled out for the match with an ankle injury.
But Akram said India always had it under control despite the fall of wickets.
"Kya zabardast chase ki hai (what a phenomenal chase). No pressure. Wickets fell, but they looked smooth, looked in control. That's a great sign for the Indian team and Indian cricket," the former Pakistan captain concluded.
