Varun suffocates New Zealand as India tops the group, set to face Australia in semis

Dubai: India made an emphatic entry into the semi-final of the Champions Trophy, defeating New Zealand by 44 runs in their last group match. The only team to win all group stage matches in the tournament, India, will face Australia in the semifinal to be held in Dubai on March 4.

Chasing a modest 250 runs, India never made it easy on the Kiwis, suffocating them with intense spin bowling. Debutant Varun Chakravarthy led the charge with a maiden five-wicket haul to reduce the experienced New Zealand batsmen to just 205 runs. Except for Kane Williamson, who scored 81 runs, no other New Zealand batsmen contributed much to the chase. 

With this win, India sits at the top of Group A with 6 points, and New Zealand is second with 4 points from 3 games. India will face Australia in the first semi-final, while New Zealand will face Group B champions South Africa in the second semi-final at Lahore. 

Varun Chakravarthy's excellent bowling spell made things difficult for New Zealand. They lost opener Rachin Ravindra early to Hardik Pandya and Will Young was dismissed by Varun to reduce New Zealand to 49/2. Williamson held their innings together with the help of Daryl Mitchell, but Kuldeep Yadav struck at the 25th over to dismiss him for just 17 runs. Tom Latham could not last for much long, as Jadeja took his wicket. Varun dismissed Glen Phillips soon, and New Zealand were struggling at 151/5.

Michael Bracewell (2) was quickly sent back by Varun. In the 41st over, Axar Patel broke Williamson's defense, and KL Rahul did a quick stumping to dash New Zealand's last hope of a win. The late stand by captain Mitchell Santner (28) was not enough to guide Kiwis to a win, and Indian spinners concluded their job with five overs to spare. 

Apart from Varun, Kuldeep took two wickets, while Jadeja, Hardik and Axar each have a wicket each

Called in to bat first, New Zealand bowlers uprooted India's famed top-order batsmen. Matt Henry started his wicket hunt in the third over when he trapped Shubhman Gill for an lbw. The Indian vice-captain failed to judge the path of the late swing ball, which hit his front leg. Though he took a review, the umpire's decision stayed on. 

The Indian captain also didn't last long. Trying to play a pull shot of Kyle Jamieson's delivery, he missed the ball's path and ended in the safe hands of Will Young. 

Appearing in his 300th one-day match, Virat Kohli looked promising, but Glenn Philips made a stunning catch to dismiss the former Indian captain. Kohli was dismissed for just 11 runs, with India losing three quick wickets only scoring 30 runs in 6.4 overs. 

Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel slowly dragged India out of the danger zone. The duo didn't get much support from the pitch but managed to add runs to the board. India crossed 100 runs in 24.4 overs. But then, Rachin Ravindra struck in the 30th over to dismiss the 98-run stand between the two. He dismissed Axar Patel for 42 runs, with Kane Williamson claiming the catch. Six overs later, Will O'Rourke took Shreyas Iyer's wicket in a short ball, a comfortable catch for Young. KL Rahul got dismissed after adding 23 runs to India's score, falling before Mitchell Santner, and India's score was 182/6 in 39.1 overs. 

Hardik Pandya took the mantle of the Indian innings and helped them reach a defendable score of 249 runs. He smashed two fours and a six in the 49th over but got dismissed by Matt Henry in the last over. Mohammed Shami tried to hit Henry's last ball for a six, but he got caught by Philips, and Henry completed his five-wicket haul. 

Brief Scores: India 249/9 in 50 overs (Shreyas Iyer 79, Hardik Pandya 45; Matt Henry 5/42) beat New Zealand 205/10 in 45.3 overs (Kane Williamson 81, Mitchell Santner 28; Varun Chakaravarthy 5/42, Kuldeep Yadav 2/56) by 44 runs.