The 2019 World Cup semifinal is a painful memory for Indian fans, to the point that New Zealand ended up being designated as a bogey for the side in major tournaments. Arguably the biggest moment in that dramatic match, which went into a reserve day with the original date being washed out towards the end of New Zealand’s innings, was MS Dhoni being run out quite sensationally by Martin Guptill in the 49th over of the Indian chase.
The run-out pretty much ended any faint hopes that the Indians had of chasing down the target of 240. Moreover, it also turned out to be the end of Dhoni’s illustrious international career as the former India captain went on to announce his retirement a year later. Wednesday marked five years since the incident and an unfortunate development seems to be that Guptill is still getting abused online for the incident.
The former New Zealand opener also made a note of it in his Instagram stories before deleting the post. “Figured out why I’m getting so much hate today,” Guptill had said while tagging a post made by ESPNCricinfo marking the fifth anniversary of the dramatic semi-final. While most comments on Guptill’s earlier Instagram posts were negative towards him, those that have been made more recently seem more respectful, with users telling the 37-year-old that they don’t hate him.
New Zealand edged India by 18 runs despite fighting half-centuries from Ravindra Jadeja and Dhoni as a rare top-order collapse cost them the game at Old Trafford in Manchester. Jadeja was one of the top-performers for India in the semi-final and his all-round show kept the Kiwis on their toes throughout the game. During the New Zealand innings, he effected a brilliant direct hit to run-out Ross Taylor for 74. He also took a brilliant catch and picked up the wicket of Henry Nicholls.
With the bat, Jadeja was at his supreme best as his 59-ball 77 took India within touching distance of winning the contest. Jadeja and MS Dhoni put together a century partnership to revive the chase but in the end it wasn’t enough as India crashed out of the competition. Dhoni sat out of all matches that India played for he rest of the year before announcing his retirement from international cricket on August 15, 2020. The Indian team, meanwhile, went missed out on the 2021 and 2022 T20 World Cups and the 2023 World Cup before finally ending their drought of ICC titles by winning the 2024 T20 World Cup.
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