In the first semifinal, both the teams would look to carry on from where they left off in the quarter-finals. New Zealand have remained unbeaten in the tournament thus far, but, they'll have to start from scratch when they take on a strong South-African side. The Proteas have the most destructive bowling attack. It would be interesting to see what transpires when this bowling line-up takes on the likes of Brendon Mccullum and Martin Guptill. The Proteas, known for repeatedly choking at crunch situations, would want to go all the way this time around. The Black Caps, though, stand in way of the South-African dream. Infact, the Blacks enjoy home advantage and thus, according to me, hold slight edge over South Africa in this contest.
It was four years ago when India eliminated Australia from the 2011 World Cup, thus preventing Australia from winning the Cup for the fourth consecutive time. Australia would like to return the favour this time around, and they have a great chance of doing so as they enjoy home advantage. Moreover, the Aussies would rely on their quicks, who have been very impressive in the tournament so far, to deliver the goods one more time. India, on the other hand, depend massively on their batsmen. They would want a couple of their batsmen to score big and keep the opposition bowlers at bay. The toss is expected to play a huge role in this game, as the team batting first would have a clear advantage. Australia, as of now, have an all-round and a well balanced team. They seem to be the stronger team on paper and thus, according to me, have a greater chance of making it to the finals.
Though the home teams seem to have their noses slightly in front, its hard to say which two teams would find themselves in Melbourne on the 29th of this month. The final knockouts of this World Cup have the potential to be classics, as many experts would agree. Any of the four teams can end up victorious, and thats the beauty of it.
