Canada vs New Zealand Match 31 Full Commentary

Welcome back for New Zealand's reply. The two umpires and players have made their way out to the centre. Finn Allen and Tim Seifert will open the innings for New Zealand. Jaskarandeep Singh will start with the new ball. Seifert will face the first ball from the right-arm quick. Let's go...

... THE RUN CHASE ...

Will 173 be enough? Towards the end, you could sense the tiredness setting in for Yuvraj, and once the 116-run opening stand was broken, those who followed could not quite deliver the finish Canada were hoping for. UAE also put up 173 in their fixture against New Zealand here at this venue, which the Kiwis chased down in a canter with an unbeaten opening stand on a similar surface. With the sun beating down, it remains to be seen whether that has any impact on how the pitch behaves in the second innings. Back in a bit for the chase.

Yuvraj Samra led the way - While Samra kept the scoreboard ticking, at the other end, Canada's skipper Dilpreet Bajwa struggled to match the tempo. That meant New Zealand were able to wrest back some control, conceding just 33 runs in the six overs following the Powerplay. The acceleration followed soon after, with Samra putting his feet down, and along the way, the 19-year-old became the youngest batter in T20 World Cups to score a century.

Steady beginning - Earlier, there wasn't much assistance for the pacers, either through the air or off the seam, and whenever there was width on offer, Yuvraj Samra in particular did not hesitate to cash in. For the first time in this World Cup, Canada navigated the Powerplay without losing a wicket and capped it off in style with an 18-run over to finish the phase strongly.

Finish fizzled out - Just 23 runs in the last 3 overs for Canada. They haven't finished as strongly as they would have liked, and while the total is competitive, they will need to bowl exceptionally well against a power-packed New Zealand batting unit. New Zealand, on the other hand, will be pleased with the way they closed out the innings, especially in these energy-sapping conditions that demanded plenty from the fielding side.

Yuvraj Samra walks off to a standing ovation. Dilon Heyliger is the new batter.

James Neesham looks spent out in the middle. Seems like the heat has got to him. He will have to push himself through these last 3 balls. Harsh Thaker walks out to bat.

James Neesham will bowl the 19th over. He has a chance to redeem himself after dropping Yuvraj Samra on the last ball of the previous over. With the ball too, he has not quite been at his best. 3-0-33-0 so far for Neesham.

Out goes Navneet Dhaliwal and in walks Nicholas Kirton.

Eyes on the next big one - So that is it from this entertaining game, where New Zealand sealed qualification to the Super 8s along with South Africa from Group D, officially knocking Canada, Afghanistan and UAE out of the race. The focus now shifts to a huge clash in Group B at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, where Zimbabwe take on Ireland. A win for the Chevrons will take them through to the next round and eliminate Australia from the Super 8 race. Rain has delayed the toss for that game, but we hope that the weather clears soon. See you there. Cheers!

Santner on the road to recovery - New Zealand's stand-in skipper for the day, Daryl Mitchell, shares that Mitchell Santner's health has improved as the day has gone on and should be fine for the next game. He has high praise for Yuvraj Samra, saying he played beautifully and that you have to take your hat off to him. Believes that on that surface, keeping Canada to 173 was a commendable effort from his bowlers. Mitchell mentions that the team backs everyone in the side to step up and deliver, starting with the Bash Brothers (Finn Allen and Tim Seifert) at the top of the order. Tells that he loves playing at Chepauk in front of such an energetic crowd and many players in the team, including himself, have been part of the CSK family. Shares that he is looking forward to the Super 8s, with a trip to Colombo coming up next.

Yuvraj's effort will inspire people back home - Dilpreet Bajwa, the captain of Canada, says that they were confident with the total, with the wicket turning and helping their spinners. Adds that they were in the contest, especially after removing the two openers, but playing one bowler short and lacking the experience of someone like Kaleem Sana limited their options. Bajwa mentions that they lost too many wickets in the Powerplay in the two games, and the plan was to bat deep. He praises Yuvraj Samra for his fantastic hundred and says that for a 19-year-old to do it on a world stage is a proud moment for him and Canadian cricket as well. Dilpreet further adds that matches like this show that the associate nations can compete, but they need to play more matches against the big teams, and then they can even win these matches. Tells that performances like this from Yuvraj Samra will inspire people back in the country to take up cricket. Ends by saying that they will play a full-strength team in the next game and go hard to finish on a good note.

Time to hear from the captains now...

A tough day out - Canada managed to remove both Kiwi openers in the Powerplay through Dilon Heyliger and Saad Bin Zafar, but the skipper might have missed a trick by bringing himself on in the fifth over, which went for 15 and released the pressure, and from there they never really recovered. The counter-attack from the Black Caps proved too strong for the Canadians, but they can still take plenty of learnings from this outing.

Yuvraj’s magic, late overs letdown - Earlier in the game, after electing to bat first, Canada posted a fighting total courtesy of a magnificent century from Yuvraj, who also became the youngest player to score a hundred in T20 World Cups. He and Bajwa put on 116 for the opening wicket, laying a strong platform, but had the skipper been a touch more proactive, along with the other batters around Samra, Canada might have pushed beyond 200. New Zealand pulled things back impressively at the death, conceding just 23 runs in the final three overs. Duffy was the standout with 1 for 25, while apart from Phillips and Cole McConchie, every bowler managed to get among the wickets.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH - Glenn Phillips wins the award for his excellent knock of 76* off 36. He shares that he and Rachin Ravindra tried to stick to processes and take one ball at a time. Believes that on some days, you just get balls in your zone, and today it happened to be one of those days for him and Rachin. Says that Rachin was fabulous and he works hard on his game. Feels that Ravindra's T20 game has come a long way, and this knock was a reward for his hard work. Reckons that they have got the middle order to do the job in case the top order does not fire, and when they do, the middle order does not have to do much. Opines that it is all a team effort. Praises Yuvraj Samra for his century, saying that he is a clean striker of the ball and paced the innings beautifully. Believes that Yuvraj has a long way to go in his career.

A wobble, then a walk in the park - New Zealand got off to a brisk start before being pegged back by the quick loss of both openers to slip to 30 for 2. However, Rachin Ravindra and Glenn Phillips came together and completely took the pressure out of the chase, showing no signs of nerves at all. They were helped by some loose bowling from Canada and made full use of it, punishing anything off line or length. The pair ensured there were no further hiccups, both bringing up unbeaten fifties and adding an unbroken 146-run stand that sealed a dominant chase, with just under 5 overs to spare.

The Kiwis mean business - One blip against South Africa, but three outstanding run chases from New Zealand have confirmed their spot in the Super 8s, and they will be a force to reckon with in the next round with most of their batters among the runs and full of confidence. Canada gave a good account of themselves, but they simply came up against a powerful Kiwi batting unit and had very few answers in the end.

DRINKS BREAK! Just 15 more runs needed for New Zealand to seal their spot in the Super 8s. After losing both openers, it did not take long for Glenn Phillips and Rachin Ravindra to seize control and take the game by the scruff of the neck. Canada have not helped their cause either, with inconsistency in line and length, allowing the batters to dictate terms. Shivam Sharma (1-0-13-0) is back.