Cricket latest
Rachin Ravindra. (File Pic: Image Credit – X)
DUBAI: Apart from making it to the semifinals of the 2025 Champions Trophy on Monday when they beat Bangladesh by five wickets at Rawalpindi,
New Zealand
were most relieved at the return of talented young gun
Rachin Ravindra
, who was returning to the action after suffering a nasty blow to his forehead which left him bleeding profusely, while taking a catch in the deep during the first match (against Pakistan at Karachi) of the Tri-series in Pakistan just before this tournament.
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Batting in the middle-order after Daryl Mitchell was ruled out due to illness, the 25-year-old cracked a 105-ball 112 to steer the Black Caps to their second win on the trot in the tournament.
Soon after the Kiwis arrived on Tuesday for their final league match against India on March 2, their head coach Gary Stead, in an interview to NZC, expressed his relief at Ravindra’s successful comeback from the injury, which saw him take a catch to send back Bangladesh’s veteran ‘keeper-batsman Mushfiqur Rahim off
Michael Bracewell
.
“Look, you take a nasty blow to the head like that and there’s always a chance that could dent your confidence. It was nice to see Rachin get a catch under a high ball pretty early on yesterday, which was probably good for his confidence as well. We’ve followed all the protocols around concussion and he’s come back, and it’s nice the way he just slots back in an unfamiliar position with Daryl (Mitchell) going down on the morning of the match (was unwell) as well,” Stead said.
The Black Caps’ head coach was pleased with his team’s bowlers, who restricted Bangladesh to 236 for nine after the Kiwis elected to field first. “It was a really good bowling performance. It was a tough bowling surface out there. We stuck to our guns well. Michael Bracewell was outstanding in the way he bowled. He got his personal best figures as well, which is always nice to see. From a batting point of view, we had early hiccups, which can happen in cricket, but I thought Rachin and Devon (Conway) initially, and then Rachin and Tom, the partnership they put together was obviously game-changing. It’s put us in a position we are in now. We have obviously come here in Dubai to play India, but knowing that we’ve made the semifinal, which is great,” Stead said.
Welcoming the return to the fold of tall pacer Kyle Jamieson, who last played an ODI for the Black Caps against Bangladesh at Mirpur in Sept 2023, before he took one for 49 in nine overs against Sri Lanka at Rawalpindi, the Black Caps head coach said, “It’s fantastic. Kyle has done so much hard work behind the scenes, and there’ve been so many people that’ve helped him get to where he is. So, we are delighted to have him back and available to play for the Black Caps. He bowled pretty well without a lot of luck yesterday…to go for 48 off nine on a pretty batter-friendly surface was outstanding.”
Stead said that, following an intense Tri-Series in Pakistan, in which they triumphed, and the first two matches of the Champions Trophy in quick time after that, the Kiwis were looking to relax for the next couple of days, before taking on India.
“Probably a couple of nice, quite days for the guys to just put their feet up and recover. We’ve had six games in a couple of weeks, and it takes its toll. Certainly, when you’re in the heat as well. It’s been some tough matches in Pakistan. We get a couple of days off now, which will be nice. It’ll be nice for the guys to just unwind a bit before they ramp up for the India game with a couple of days training as well and getting ready for that game.”