"It's extremely rare that the entire top 5 has form" - Aakash Chopra on India's batting strength heading into 2023 World Cup semi-final vs New Zealand
Aakash Chopra believes India's cause in the 2023 World Cup semi-final against New Zealand will be helped by virtually their entire batting lineup being in form.
The two sides will square off in the first last-four clash at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Wednesday, November 15. Australia and South Africa will lock horns in the other semi-final a day later at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, with the final to be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
Previewing the India-New Zealand clash in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra opined that the Indian batters' form should hold the team in good stead. He elaborated (3:00):
"The Indian batting has been so solid, you need to ward off the effects of an evil eye, whether it is Shubman Gill or Rohit Sharma, then Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul. All five of them are in amazing form. It's extremely rare that the entire top five has form."
The former India opener pointed out that Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer played substantial knocks in the Men in Blue's previous game at the Wankhede. He observed:
"The last time they played on this pitch, three players nearly scored nineties. It was Kohli, Gill and Shreyas Iyer. No one scored a century but that doesn't matter because India still scored 350-plus runs."
Gill (92 off 92), Kohli (88 off 94) and Iyer (82 off 56) helped India set Sri Lanka a mammoth 358-run target in their league-stage clash in Mumbai. The two-time champions then bundled out the Lankan Lions for a paltry 55 to complete a resounding 302-run win.
"I won't be surprised if 325 is also not scored" - Aakash Chopra doesn't expect the semi-final to be a very high-scoring affair
![India chased down a 274-run target in their league game against New Zealand. [P/C: AP]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2023/11/2981e-17000198163910-1920.jpg?w=500)
Aakash Chopra doesn't see the semi-final being a run fest. He said (3:35):
"If India bat first, I am saying maximum 300-325. I don't see 375-400 being scored here. I won't be surprised if 325 is also not scored because this is a World Cup semi-final."
However, Chopra added that the hosts can post a mammoth total if Rohit Sharma is at his belligerent best. He stated:
"If we are bowling, we will stop them between 260 and 280, and I feel they will also stop us at 305 maximum, unless Rohit Sharma absolutely goes berserk, because I give him that allowance. If he fires, he can take the team's total to 375 as well, or else there are full chances of it being a 305 to 310-run match."
Rohit has given India blazing starts more often than not. His 503 runs in nine innings in the tournament have come at an outstanding strike rate of 121.49.