By Riyaz ul Khaliq
ANKARA (AA) - New Zealand’s spectacular bowling helped Kiwis advance to the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, as they beat India by 18 runs in a rain-affected semifinal on Wednesday.
Resuming their innings on Wednesday at 211-5 with 3.5 overs remaining -- as rain halted the match on Tuesday at Old Trafford stadium in Manchester -- New Zealand set a target of 240 in the 50 overs game.
Chasing the target, India lost quick wickets with Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul could only score one run each. Dinesh Karthik, a middle order batsman, could only score 6 runs as top four batsmen were dismissed in just first 10 overs.
However, Ravindra Jadeja and MS Dhoni fought back with 77 and 50-run knocks respectively, giving a hope to 1.3 billion supporters back home.
India were bowled out at 222 runs, falling short off 18 runs.
Second semi-final is set to be played on Thursday between Australia and England in Edgbaston Cricket Ground in England.
Winner of the second semifinal would face New Zealand in the world cup final at Lord’s stadium on Sunday.