Picture Credit: Disney+ Hotstar
The first semi-final of 2021 T20 World Cup has kicked off in Abu Dhabi with New Zealand and England locking horns with each other on Wednesday. It's a repeat of the finale of 2019 ODI WC which is why all the fans have been eagerly waiting for this face-off for quite some time. It was Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson who won the all-important toss and he asked England to bat first.
Meanwhile, Eoin Morgan's side came into this contest with some concerns of their own. With Jason Roy injured, England were forced to tinker with their settled batting line-up. In-form Jos Buttler was joined by experienced Jonny Bairstow at the top. They got off to a steady start with both openers taking advantage of the fielding restrictions as they played some glorious shots all over the park. The score read 37/0 in 5 overs and the stage was set brilliantly for an action-packed final over of powerplay.
Williamson's heroics send Bairstow back to pavilion
Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson made a bowling change and handed the ball to Adam Milne. It looked like there was a plan in place to attack the batsmen with some extra pace and the move by NZ paid dividends on the first ball itself.
Jonny Bairstow tried to play an attacking shot off the bowling of Milne but did not really time the ball to perfection. The cover drive played by the right-handed batsman went towards Kane Williamson who took an outstanding catch diving forward to give his side the first breakthrough.
Bairstow's stay at the crease ended on 13 runs off 17 balls as New Zealand got the wicket just when the game was running slightly away from them.