Key Battles in Semi Final 2: India vs England at Adelaide Oval in Adelaide: Nov 10, 2022

Key Battles in Semi Final 2: India vs England at Adelaide Oval in Adelaide: Nov 10, 2022

Let us look at a few key battles that will decide the outcome of the semi final between India and England in the semi final to be held at the Adelaide Oval. You can read the Match Preview here and the road to the semi finals for these teams here.

Mark Wood vs Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul

If Mark Wood starts the game, then his opening burst against the Indian openers would be the key to set the tone for England. For India, Rahul and Rohit would do well to survive this raw pace and take advantage later.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Arshdeep Singh vs Jos Buttler and Alex Hales

Bhuvneshwar Kumar has the wood over Jos Buttler and troubled him greatly in the last series these two sides played in. Add Arshdeep Singh to the mix and the Indian opening bowlers form a lethal and potent opposition for the English openers, both of whom struggle against the moving ball.

R Ashwin vs Liam Livingstone

Liam Livingstone is one player in that English middle order that can single handedly kill the game in the favour of the English. He is a good player of spin and with short Adelaide boundaries, it will be imperative for India to get him out early. How R Ashwin fares against him, if these two are up against each other, will be a key and a fascinating part of the match.

Adil Rashid vs Suryakumar Yadav

Like Liam Livingstone, Suryakumar Yadav is the man who can turn the tide in India's favour very quickly with his explosive batting. He smashed a stunning 100 just a few months back against England and has looked in sublime form in the ongoing T20 World Cup. Adil Rashid will be tasked with keeping SKY quiet and if possible sneak a googly through his defence!

Sam Curran vs Hardik Pandya

Sam Curran is a man who seems to have reinvented his death bowling. He has been phenomenal for England in the closing overs and Hardik Pandya will be tasked to take him on during the slog overs for India. How Pandya fares against the wily Curran is something that might decide the fate of the match, especially if India bat first.

Adil Rashid and Ben Stokes vs Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli is back to his best and the middle overs will be all about how he goes about his business against Adil Rashid and Ben Stokes. Kohli has struggled a bit against leg break bowling on occasions with the google often deceiving him. Like Suryakumar Yadav, how Kohli handles Rashid will go a long way in how India eventually fare in the match. Ben Stokes is a man for the big occasions and he will definitely take on the responsibility of getting Kohli when he comes to the crease. Stokes is known to get regular wickets and his battle with Virat will be intriguing to watch too.

Which battle fascinates you the most? What are you most looking forward to?

My Review of Team India for the Semi Final game Vs Pakistan

Marks for the Indian Players for the match vs Pakistan

Virender Sehwag - 5/10 – gave a fiery start to the innings, like he always does, but could not carry on.

Sachin Tendulkar – 8/10 – gave a fiery start to the innings and carried on, stopped just short of his hundred, played a brilliant innings.

Gautam Gambhir – 3/10 – couldn’t build on the start.

Virat Kohli – 1/10 – was good in the field but contributed just 9 runs...

Yuvraj Singh – 4/10 – failed with bat but worked magic with the ball.

MS Dhoni – 6/10 – Good captaincy tactics and stuck on for a while with the bat too.

Suresh Raina – 5/10 – Made some very valuable runs in the end helping India build up a formidable total.

Harbhajan Singh – 4/10 – picked up the key wickets of Umar Akmal and Shahid Afridi.

Zaheer Khan – 3/10 – provided the initial breakthrough though more was expected frm him.

Ashish Nehra – 4/10 – the most economical, bowled a number of dot balls, overall bowled quite tactfully

Munaf Patel – 3/10 – got 2 wickets including the key wicket of Haffeez who was going pretty strong and bowled the only maiden for India.

Overall Points

Batting – 6/10

Bowling – 5/10

Team – 6/10

India Vs Pakistan, Semi Final - Match Review

India Vs Pakistan – 2nd Semi Final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, 30th March –Mohali

India made one change from the previous game, Nehra called in for Aswin and Pakistanis walked in unchanged. The day started off perfectly for the Indians with the hosts winning the toss and electing to bat first. Sehwag and Sachin provided a perfect fierce start to the team. If there is a thing called luck, then Sachin (85 runs) had it in abundance. He was provided not one, not two but three lifelines, which proved to be very costly to the Pakistanis. The only thing he missed out on was his record of 100th international century. What further helped matters was the opposition’s sloppy work in the field, catches being dropped, and the overall poor display of fielding which helped Indian conjure a total of 260.

In view of the not so good Indian bowling performance, the total looked every bit defendable.

In spite of a promising start, the Pakistanis could never really lift their game and build the momento. It all came down to Misbah ul Haq who batted sensibly and tried to stay at the wickets. He hit some shots toward the end but alas it was too late! The Men in Green were just outclassed by the Men in Blue!

It was a day where things seemed to be destined…where everything went right in the favor of the home team - India! Moreover, they played as a team and looked ferocious. Overall, it was good game of cricket!

Now its time for the Finals…The Last match – INDIA Vs SRI LANKA, The countdown begins!!!

Sri Lanka - The first team to March into the Finals!

Sri Lanka Vs New zealand – 1nd Semi Final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, 29th March - Columbo

It came as no surprise, Sri Lanka won the game in Columbo, their home ground but not without some hiccups! After a Chasing a total of 217, Sri Lanka were off to good start, the top 3 playing their parts pretty well! It was somewhere in the middle they stuttered which made things difficult for them. But they had to do it in the end, with the entire stadium cheering for their home team, and for the man who was playing his last match on the home turf - Yes! Muttiah Murlidharan!!

So, then Sri Lanka becomes the first team to enter the finals,

who will be the second one??

India Or Pakistan

4 and a half hours to go... The countdown has already begun. There is already some news that the rain Gods are bracing themselves up to spoil the party! Lets hope for the best!!!

Till the match begins, you can get a hang of the two teams by reading the preview here.

India Vs Pakistan - 2nd Semi Final, Match Preview

India Vs Pakistan – 2nd Semi Final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011

The mother of all battles, the war without weapons… The match that is worthy of a cult status…

Indian top order has been in good form with Sachin, Sehwag scoring the bulk of the runs along with Yuvraj Singh. But Gambhir has struggled in the middle right through and Kohli, after a scintillating start against the Bangladeshis has not done much either. But the addition of Suresh Raina has provided some much needed solidity to the lower order as Dhoni is also out of sorts. The bowling is led by Zaheer Khan who has taken the bulk of the wickets along with Yuvraj Singh. Harbhajan Singh needs to play a vital part against the Pakistan team if India is to do well in this game as the pressure will be huge.

Pakistan batting has struggled almost all through the tournament though it has had its moments. Hafeez and Asad Shafiq have added solidity to the top order while the middle order is strengthened by Younis Khan and Misbah Ul Haq. The lower order has hard hitters in Umar Akmal, Abdur Razzaq and Shahid Afridi. It is their bowling however that is very strong and Afridi is the leading wicket taker in this edition of the world cup 2011. He also has for company Hafeez and Abdur Rehman along with Ajmal to support him in the spin department. The fast bowling is also going strong with Umar Gul playing a vital role for them. There is still suspense whether Shoaib Akthar will play or not!!

The fielding may not be very important in this tie and it will be interesting to see which side that fields badly.

Key Battles to look out for in the match between India Vs Pakistan, 30th March - Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh, India

1. Pakistan top Order Vs Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh

2. M S Dhoni Vs Shahid Afridi

3. Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh Vs Umar Gul, Shahid Afridi

Sri Lanka Vs New Zealand – 1st Semi Final, Match Preview

Sri Lanka Vs New Zealand – 1st Semi Final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011

The first semi final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 is upon us. It is a repeat of the 2007 edition when Sri Lanka beat New Zealand comfortably riding on a century by the then Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene and 4 wickets from the spin master Muttiah Murlitharan.

New Zealand batting has been firing in patches and one can say that all their batsmen Brendon Mc Cullum, Jesse Ryder, Martin Guptill and Ross Taylor have had decent hits in the middle. The middle order of Scot Styris, Jacob Oram and Kane Williamson played well in the last match Vs South Africa. Their bowling is led by talismanic skipper Daniel Vettori and he will be ably supported by Tim Southee, Nathan Mc Cullum, Jacob Oram and Scot Styris. But it is their fielding which is their strongest suit. Guptill in the game against South Africa was just awesome, he was everywhere… diving, flying, sliding… One of the most brilliant fielding displays of recent times!!!

The Sri Lankans on the other hand have all their top order batsmen in a pink of form with Upul Tharanga, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene all having scored hundreds at some point or the other till now in this World Cup!! Infact the opening combo has two 200 run partnerships in the current tournament, one of them unbeaten!!! The middle order though is a bit of a concern for them as they have not spent enough time in the middle till now. The bowling is led by the eccentric Lasith Malinga and he has for support the old war horse Muttiah Murlitharan. They also have Angelo Matthews, Rangana Herath and Ajantha Mendis who can deceive the Kiwis with their variations. But the fitness of Murli will be an issue. They also dropped a few catches in the last match Vs England.

On paper this may seem like a pretty one sided affair with everything stacked up against the New Zealanders… The pitch, the conditions, the quality of players, the weather, home crowd support…. But it is who plays better cricket for the duration of 100 overs, soaks up the pressure well and remains calm under tough circumstances will come out trumps.

Key Battles to look out for in the match between Sri Lanka Vs New Zealand, 29th March - R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo, Sri Lanka

1. Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene Vs Daniel Vettori, Nathan Mc Cullum

2. Lasith Malinga Vs Brendon Mc Cullum, Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor

3. Muttiah Murlitharan, Ajantha Mendis, Rangana Herath Vs Kiwi Middle-Lower Order

The Semi Final Line Ups

The Semi Final Line Ups are as follows

 

Sri Lanka Vs New Zealand, 29th March - R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo, Sri Lanka

India Vs Pakistan, 30th March - Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh, India