New Delhi: Rachin Ravindra's exceptional century (112 runs off 105 balls, including 12 fours and 1 six) and Michael Bracewell's impressive bowling performance of 4 wickets for 26 runs propelled New Zealand into the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy, as they defeated Bangladesh by five wickets in Rawalpindi on Monday. This outcome also allowed India, who secured two victories like New Zealand, to advance to the final four from Group A, while the hosts and defending champions, Pakistan, along with Bangladesh, were eliminated without securing a win, despite having one match remaining.

The upcoming match between New Zealand and India in Dubai on March 2 will determine the group leader.

A win for Bangladesh could have kept all four teams in Group A in contention for the semi-final spots; however, New Zealand's decisive chase eliminated any such possibilities. Ravindra was the standout performer in this chase, showcasing an impressive range of powerful drives and subtle nudges, marking his fourth ODI century. The left-handed batsman, who missed the opening match against Pakistan due to a forehead injury sustained during the preceding tri-series, formed valuable partnerships with Devon Conway and Tom Latham.

Chasing a target of 237 on a favorable Rawalpindi pitch after Mitchell Santner won the toss, New Zealand maintained a consistent pace despite losing two early wickets to the spirited bowling of Taskin Ahmed and Nahid Rana.

Will Young (0), who had scored a century against Pakistan the previous week, was dismissed in the first over as Taskin's accuracy paid off. After moving the ball away from the off-stump, he delivered a final ball that cut back to breach Young's defense. Rana then dismissed the key player Kane Williamson (5) with a delivery that seamed away after pitching outside the off-stump.

Despite Bangladesh's initial success in securing two wickets within the first four overs, Conway and Ravindra managed to stabilize the innings. Taskin and Rana posed a challenge with their pace and length, yet the duo effectively countered this threat by blending aggressive drives with delicate nudges, ensuring the scoreboard continued to progress. On multiple occasions, the Bangladesh pacers struck the splice or inside edges of the bats, highlighting their difficulty in achieving consistent success.

Conway emerged as the early aggressor, elegantly guiding Taskin past the cover fielder for a couple of boundaries before striking Rana for three fours in the ninth over. Mehidy Hasan Miraz was met with a four from each left-hander, although the subsequent six overs yielded only one additional boundary. With runs hard to come by, Conway, in an attempt to steer a ball through point, inadvertently chopped a length delivery onto the stumps. Nevertheless, his partnership of 57 runs with Ravindra had effectively laid the groundwork for the chase.

Tom Latham, coming off a century against Pakistan, then partnered with Ravindra, who utilized his reach to time good-length deliveries past the cover and point regions. He drove a yorker from Mustafizur Rahman to the straight boundary, struck Mehidy for a boundary to mid-wicket against the spin, and pulled Najmul Shanto for six as New Zealand accelerated their scoring. The two forged a partnership of 129 runs for the fourth wicket, effectively closing the door on Bangladesh.

Earlier, Bangladesh began with vigor, accumulating 58 runs in the first ten overs. However, their run rate began to decline as New Zealand tightened their grip. Player-of-the-Match Bracewell spearheaded the Kiwi attack during the middle overs, with a combination of precise off-spin and poor execution from the batters leading to the complete suffocation of Bangladesh’s middle order.

The team's most seasoned batter, Mushfiqur Rahim, last match’s centurion Towhid Hridoy, and the stylish Mahmudullah all fell for single-digit scores to Bracewell. Consequently, Bangladesh's scoring rate dropped to less than four runs per over during the 30-over period following the first powerplay, resulting in the absence of any 50-run partnerships.

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