World Cup 2019: Three problems New Zealand have to fix right now
New Zealand have reached the semi-finals of the World Cup 2019 despite a poor run of losses in the last stage. The gutsy Kiwis will face either India or Australia on Tuesday. However, their progression to the knockout stages was far from straightforward. New Zealand’s group phase told a story of two halves.
The first half was almost faultless. It included resounding victories over Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, a washout and two close wins over South Africa and the West-Indies. The team was first in the points table after the game against the Men in Maroon with five wins out of six.
The second half was disastrous. New Zealand lost their last three pool matches against Pakistan, Australia and England. Their batting was collapsed in the final two games and they are a bit lucky to have scraped through on net run rate.
Cracks have started to appear for the Men in Black at the worst-possible moment. This does not bode well for them on the eve of the semi-finals. Let us look at three problems that New Zealand has to fix ASAP.
#3 Mitchell Santner’s ineffective bowling
New Zealand have one of the most dangerous pace bowling attacks in the tournament. Their seamers have picked up 59 wickets during the group phase. This is in stark contrast to the team’s spinners, who picked up a pitiful four wickets during that period. They need to fix the spin problem before the semi-finals start.
Mitchell Santner’s bowling was ineffective during the first phase and the opposition teams milked him for runs. Santner took only four wickets, falling way below the team’s standards.
Ish Sodhi, the team’s reserve spinner, might be a better pick for the knockout stages. He played in only one match, however, and it will be a risk to field him in the knockouts.
Sodhi is more attack-minded that Santner and can work as a better strike bowler, so he could be gambled on.
Also see – Australia vs England head to head stats