Rachin Ravindra's century against Australia was ultimately in vain. Photo / Photosport
Rachin Ravindra's century against Australia was ultimately in vain. Photo / Photosport
A final-ball defeat by Australia stings, and the Black Caps will clearly be less than content if the World Cup ends in similar heartbreak.
But no matter what happens in the next fortnight, they will take at least one unmitigated positive from their time in India.
Rachin Ravindra stroked a second masterful century of the tournament during Sunday’s five-run loss, with the crowd in Dharamsala chanting the 23-year-old’s name as he broke his own record for the fastest World Cup ton by a New Zealand batter.
His knock of 116 from 89 balls was ultimately in vain - unlike against England, this chase of 388 was slightly too challenging - but Ravindra has in rapid time transformed from squad player to key figure.
The Black Caps boast few like him. Ravindra, who turns 24 the day before the final, is one of only two under-30 players in the 15-man group, along with 26-year-old Glenn Phillips.
While this World Cup loomed as a last stand for some senior Black Caps, there had been doubts about the next generation coming to fill their spikes, especially once Finn Allen was jettisoned.
But the emergence of Ravindra as both a building block and potential linchpin will be a serious boon, regardless of whether his side recovers from consecutive setbacks to reach the semifinals.
“You probably look at it at the start and [are] very grateful to be here and how things have worked out,” Ravindra said. “We’re in a position as a team to hopefully push on and keep winning games, and individually, the runs are for the team, so I’m happy to be able to contribute.”
Those contributions were made possible only by Kane Williamson’s poor fortune, filling in at No. 3 while the skipper completed rehabilitation from knee surgery. There was no luck in Ravindra retaining his place, though, supplanting Will Young as first-choice opener following his unbeaten 123 on opening night.
With a broken thumb putting Williamson back in the casualty ward, Ravindra has continued to flourish at first drop, passing 50 in four of six innings. But in shorter forms his future lies atop the order, where he plays for Wellington, while his left-arm orthodox makes him an enticing test option even on green pitches at home.
Rachin Ravindra was in fine form against Australia. Photo / Photosport
It’s his bat that has widened eyes in India, pulling to great effect while also carving boundaries behind the square and hitting classical drives down the ground.
Australia’s esteemed pace attack provided Ravindra few concerns - albeit on a near-perfect pitch for batting - and his 77-ball century left the locals lauding him like one of their own.
“I’m very proud of my Indian heritage, and I’m proud to be able to do it in the country where my parents were born,” he said. “This was probably one of the best crowds we’ve played in India, and having that sort of fanfare and how they responded to the game was pretty special.”
“As a kid, you always dream of the crowd chanting your name, and it was cool to see them do that on multiple occasions. It’s always special; you soak in those moments, and hopefully never take them for granted.”
Ravindra’s team cannot take for granted a knockout spot, though it’s doubtful complacency crept in given the way their schedule was set. One-sided wins out of the way, the Black Caps have now been beaten by two semifinal contenders, with three more to play.
That starts against high-flying South Africa in Pune on Wednesday night, when another loss will be far from fatal ahead of potentially defining clashes with Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
New Zealand will be crossing their fingers over the health of Lockie Ferguson, set for a scan on his Achilles after being restricted to three overs against Australia.
