New Zealand are aiming to reach the T20 World Cup final for the first time by defeating England on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi; watch England vs New Zealand from 1.30pm, live on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event.
Wednesday 10 November 2021 08:11, UK
Although they were crowned inaugural world Test champions earlier this year, New Zealand have yet to taste success in either of the game's white-ball versions.
England, of course, denied the Black Caps a maiden 50-over World Cup triumph in a gripping climax at Lord's two years ago - and it was also Eoin Morgan's men who put paid to their hopes in the last edition of the T20 World Cup.
The 2016 semi-final clash in Delhi, where England stormed home by seven wickets, equalled New Zealand's best performance in the tournament and they will aim to go one better when the teams lock horns again on Wednesday, live on Sky Sports Cricket.
So should Kane Williamson's men feel optimistic about overcoming England in Abu Dhabi to reach their first T20 final - or are they destined to miss out once again?
Despite losing seamer Lockie Ferguson to a calf injury on the eve of the tournament, the Black Caps have been able to field a virtually unchanged side since then, with Adam Milne coming in as a more than capable replacement.
They made only one change to their line-up during the Super 12s, leaving out wicketkeeper Tim Seifert following the defeat to Pakistan and handing the gloves to Devon Conway, with Milne brought in to beef up the pace attack.
England, meanwhile, have been forced to disrupt their team twice due to injury after losing seamer Tymal Mills to a thigh strain against Sri Lanka and then seeing Jason Roy pull up with a torn calf during their defeat to South Africa last weekend.
No New Zealand batter has scored more runs in T20I cricket than Martin Guptill - 3,115 to date - and the 35-year-old registered their highest score of the tournament, 93 from 56 balls against Scotland.
However, Guptill's effort is the only 50-plus contribution among the squad so far and, while none of his top-order colleagues have looked completely out of nick, they have yet to post a match-winning knock.
For England, Jos Buttler's explosive performances have crowned their run to the semi-finals, but he is now without opening partner Roy, the only other batter in the squad to top the 100-run mark in the tournament so far.
Neither Trent Boult nor Tim Southee featured in New Zealand's semi-final defeat to England in 2016, but their opening bowlers have become a watchword for consistency and reliability across all formats in recent years.
Boult and Southee have both proved skilful at stifling opposing batters during the powerplay overs, particularly in the victories over Namibia and Afghanistan that confirmed their side's passage to the last four.
The experienced duo have gone for below six an over so far in the tournament - not a claim that can be made by any of England's frontline pace bowlers. Chris Jordan, with an economy rate of 6.18, has been the best of the bunch in that regard.
Mitchell Santner opened the bowling in New Zealand's first Super 12 fixture, but that experiment was swiftly abandoned and the left-armer, along with fellow spinner Ish Sodhi, have represented more of a threat during the middle overs.
Sodhi in particular has made an impact, capturing eight wickets so far including the crucial scalps of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to cement the Black Caps' advantage in the first of their four victories, against India.
England may hold the edge here, though - spinners Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid have looked dangerous both in the powerplay and later in the innings, with Liam Livingstone providing another good option in the spin department.
New Zealand's T20 results were relatively unimpressive in the build-up to the tournament - they lost their five-match series 3-2 to Bangladesh in September and were then beaten in warm-up games against Australia and England.
However, after slumping to a five-wicket reverse in their Super 12 opener against Pakistan, the Black Caps have since reeled off four straight victories, all of them - other than a 16-run win over Scotland - by fairly comfortable margins.
They’re driven by success but they’re also driven by history and trying to create history. There’s no talk of revenge, New Zealanders are just not that nasty, are they? I know they’re probably seen as the nice guys of world cricket but they play the game pretty tough as well.
The momentum of that winning streak is still present in the camp, whereas England - having begun the tournament with four out of four - must now rediscover theirs after surrendering their 100 per cent record against South Africa.
Watch the T20 World Cup semi-final between England and New Zealand from 1.30pm, Wednesday live on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event.
