New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson and veteran opener, Martin Guptill recalled the crucial run out of MS Dhoni in the ICC World Cup 2019 semifinal as the dismissal which completely changed the complexion of the game. Dhoni looked in good touch and was all set to take the Indian team to their fourth World Cup final before Martin Guptill’s sharp throw sent him back to the pavilion and signaled the end of India’s hopes in the competition.
In a video shared by Amazon Prime Video, Kane Williamson recalled, “Unbelievable run-out from Martin Guptill for a direct hit from that distance. It clearly was a big wicket which certainly gave us a much better chance to get across the line.”
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Martin Guptill, who called it ‘one hell of a game’ said that even though Colin de Grandhomme was present at the strikers’ end, he had to nail the direct hit by all possible means to run out the legendary skipper. He said, “Colin de Grandhomme was there but it had to be a direct hit and I think he [Dhoni] was something like that far short so if it had been taken he would have been safe so it had to be a direct hit. It was one hell of a game.”
MS Dhoni played a brilliant knock of 50 runs off 72 deliveries in that knockout match and played a good supporting role to Ravindra Jadeja who went berserk at the other end. The duo made a partnership of 116 runs for the seventh wicket just when India was almost blown away having been reduced to 92/6 chasing a modest 240.
After Jadeja was caught at long-off by Kane Williamson while trying to keep up with the steep asking rate, the onus was entirely on Dhoni to get the job done. While Dhoni did clobber Lockie Ferguson for a six, the following ball rose unexpectedly and deceived the veteran batter. He ran immediately and even completed the first run quickly.
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Nonetheless, MS Dhoni decided to go for a risky second run despite some hesitation, but before he could manage to complete it, Guptill’s direct hit had dislodged the bails. The matter was referred to the third umpire and the replays showed that the batter was just short of the line.
Dhoni stood in disbelief when ‘Out’ was signaled on the giant screen and took the long walk back to the pavilion for the last time in international cricket as India suffered an 18-run loss to bow out of the tournament.
