He scored a crucial 112 against Bangladesh to book New Zealand’s spot in the semis.
Rachin Ravindra has made a stunning comeback against Bangladesh by scoring a vital 112 off 105 to help New Zealand secure a berth in the Champions Trophy 2025 semi-final. Just two weeks ago, the Kiwi batter faced a freak injury during the Pakistan Tri-series.
“After the injury that he had, we did chat a few times. We just acknowledged that he has to be ready for a game even without much practice. He knew that he had done a lot of work over the years, which stood him in good stead. He was in a good space and was not anxious that he did not have a lot of cricket under his belt,” said Rachin’s childhood mentor.
Sriram Krishnamurthy was elated to see his well-calculated recent knock in Rawalpindi. He has worked extensively with the southpaw at different teams in New Zealand before shifting to Chennai to take up the role of head coach at the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) academy.
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Sriram has seen him grow from his initial days. He was part of Rachin’s journey from a player to a star for the big stages. The mentor acknowledged that a player cannot perform well in every match but termed it a “coincidence” that Rachin always shines in the ICC tournaments. The 25-year-old has also achieved the record of most hundreds by a Kiwi batter in major ICC men’s ODI events.
The Super Kings Academy head coach believes Rachin will play well against the Indian spinners during their group-stage clash. Considering his impressive recent form, particularly in the ODI World Cup and the Test series in India, his mentor is confident he will deliver with the bat once again.
“Rachin does not make it too big in his head. It is normal for us to think that we are playing on a much bigger stage. Sometimes, that can cripple us in terms of our mindset and how we naturally play. But with Rachin, knowing the boy, he does not get bogged down by the magnitude of the events. He approaches the games just like any other matches”, Sriram stated.
However, Sriram stressed that adapting to the conditions of Dubai after playing in Pakistan for the last few weeks would be a tough challenge for the players. With many left-handed batters in the New Zealand team, he wondered whether India would stick to their winning combination or not.
New Zealand will face India on March 2 as part of the last league match of the competition. Both teams have booked their spot for the semis. The result of their match will decide the final NRR before heading for the knockout stage. The other two teams in the same Group (Group A), Pakistan and Bangladesh, are out of the tournament.
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