England batsmen gear up for Kiwi spin test in semis

A supremely confident New Zealand will rely on spinners Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi, who have wreaked havoc in the tournament so far, when they clash against England in what promises to be a thrilling first semi-final of the ICC World Twenty20, here on Wednesday.

On paper, New Zealand are favourites against 2010 champions, who have not exactly been consistent en route their entry into the last four.

Yet to win a global tournament, a New Zealand victory would also be a fitting tribute to late Martin Crowe from some of the cricketers in this current squad like Martin Guptill, Ross Taylor and Grant Elliott, all of whom shared a close bond with the former national skipper.

In Kane Williamson, New Zealand have found an astute skipper, ready to adapt to the conditions and change according to the demands of the situation. That has been the hallmark of New Zealand’s performance in this tournament and their all-win record in the group league stage is a testimony to that.

For England, the binding factor has been Joe Root’s inspirational innings of 83 that helped them chase down a mammoth 230-run target against South Africa. Not to forget Jos Buttler’s whirlwind half-century against Sri Lanka and brilliant death bowling by Chris Jordan and Ben Stokes.

The unlikely heroes in New Zealand’s campaign has been unheralded left-arm spinner Santner and leg-break bowler Sodhi, who have been the architects of ‘Beige Brigade’s’ success in the tournament so far. While Santner has snared nine wickets in 15 completed overs giving away only 86 runs, Sodhi has been close on heels with eight scalps in 15.4 overs conceding 78 runs.

The leg-spinner has a shade better economy rate of 4.97 compared to left-arm spinner’s 5.73.