A confident New Zealand side will be eager to seal a semi-final spot when they take on Bangladesh, who will be fighting for survival, in their Champions Trophy Group A match in Rawalpindi on Monday.
'It's a very special feeling, the first time in our history we've come away with a World title,' said New Zealand skipper Kane Wiilliamson after victory over India in the WTC final on Wednesday.
With less than 100 days to go to the Twenty20 World Cup in Sri Lanka, New Zealand batsman Kane Williamson feels that cricketing powerhouse India will be amongst the favourites to lift the trophy.
After England collapsed from 288 for five to 302 all out, New Zealand initially struggled in reply before Williamson and Taylor took the game away from the hosts with a clinical 206-run third-wicket stand.
Williamson's departure for 59 helped reduce New Zealand to 142 for three at the break -- 361 runs in arrears -- but a rain storm wiped out the final session and ensured the match would go into a fifth day.
Fast bowler Lockie Ferguson will take over the captain's role for the first time in his career as regular skipper Kane Williamson continues to recover from a knee injury, and his deputy Tom Latham has been rested for the series.
New Zealand ripped through Australia's batting line-up on a lethal wicket to leave the hosts foundering on 81 for seven in their first innings at lunch on the second day of the second Test on Saturday.
IMAGES from the Day-Night Test, the first played between New Zealand and England at Auckland on Thursday
Images from Day 2 of the first Test between India and New Zealand in Kanpur, on Friday.
New Zealand bowler Lockie Ferguson joined Canada skipper Saad Bin Zafar as only the second bowler in T20I history to bowl each of the allotted four overs as maidens, returning figures of 4-4-0-3. Zafar recorded 4-4-0-2.
New Zealand batting great Kane Williamson praised Nitish Rana's match-winning 36-ball 81 against Chennai Super Kings on Sunday.
Kane Williamson was the proverbial cat with nine lives on Friday as he top scored for New Zealand with 47 against a fired up Indian pace attack keen on exploiting what they could from a green and bouncy Basin Reserve pitch.
'Gutted, the guys put in a huge effort to get this opportunity, to pretty much do all you could and still not get across the line'
NZ face WI in virtual knockout, rain threatens to derail England again
Kane Williamson produced some brilliant placement under pressure to guide New Zealand to a five-wicket victory over Zimbabwe in their second Twenty20 international at Seddon Park in Hamilton on Tuesday.
Out-of-form New Zealand opener Devon Conway will miss the third Test against England in Hamilton to remain at home for the birth of his first child this week
IMAGES from the T20 World Cup match played between England and New Zealand in Brisbane on Tuesday.
The importance of the three-match ODI series against New Zealand was not lost on Dhawan
New Zealand ripped through England's top order to close in on a series-leveling victory as the hosts limped to 102 for five at lunch on the last day of the second and final Test on Tuesday.
Tamilians and Keralites believe he is one of them, and people from Karnataka also consider him their hero.
Williamson had moved to 148 at stumps with Mitchell Santner on 13, the home side holding a seven run lead over South Africa's first innings of 314.
Axar also patted fellow spinner Varun Chakravarthy (5/42) for coming up with a match-winning spell.
Chasing a revised target of 235 from 33 overs following two rain interruptions, Australia were struggling at 53 for three in nine overs when the heavens opened up for the third time in the day, forcing the onfield umpires to abandon the game as both the sides split points.
Head coach Trevor Bayliss said the reason why Kane Williamson was left out of SunRisers Hyderabad's opening match against Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday was because the New Zealand captain needs a bit of extra time to regain his match fitness.
New Zealand Cricket has indicated that it may not block its players from fully participating in the upcoming IPL if the knock-out phase matches of the lucrative league clash with the Test series opener in England beginning on June 2.
The Kiwis are scheduled to play England in two Tests in the first and second week of next month, following which they will face India in the ICC World Test Championship final from June 18-22.
Images from Day 2 of the first Test between England and New Zealand at Lord's on Friday, June 3, 2022.
Kane Williamson has shown that classically elegant batsmen, too, could prosper big time in the slam-bang world of Indian Premier League cricket and former Australia batsman Dean Jones wants the likes of Ajinkya Rahane and Gautam Gambhir, who have struggled in this year's IPL, to take cues from the New Zealand captain.
Despite the glossiness of their victory over New Zealand, Indian captain Rohit Sharma was candid enough to admit that the team felt a few strands of pressure going into the World Cup semifinal in Mumbai on Wednesday.
India will look for the right balance as they aim for a series-levelling victory against a spunky New Zealand in the must-win second Test.
Williamson said it would be "some achievement" for his team to be world champions in another format but would not like the prospect to be a distraction.
India will aim to shed their archaic playing style for good with a 'young and fearless' bunch in the three-match T20I series against New Zealand, starting in Wellington on Friday.
Images from the T20 World Cup semi-final between England and New Zealand, in Abu Dhabi, on Wednesday.
Tim Southee is eyeing the third Test against England as his swan song in the format but will make himself available for selection if the Black Caps make the WTC final next year.
'It's just trying to understand what the best recipe is for the team you are in with the resources that you have'
The win over Ireland saw New Zealand grab the top spot with seven points and a net runrate of +2.113.
New Zealand have never beaten South Africa in a Test series in nearly a century of trying and will rarely have a better chance to break that drought than in two matches against a severely depleted side starting on Sunday.
Mohammed Shami's dazzling seven wickets powered India into the World Cup 2023 final.
New Zealand coach confirmed his team would rest on Friday with temperatures expected to reach 45 degrees Celsius
New Zealand opener Rachin Ravindra believes adapting to the conditions will be key to success in the Champions Trophy final against India in Dubai.
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