Mumbai, Nov 14: New Zealand opener Devon Conway believes hosts India are carrying a lot of momentum and possess a strong squad ahead of the upcoming semi-final meeting between the two teams in the 2023 Men’s ODI World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday.
“We all know how good India are. They’re carrying a lot of momentum, they have a strong squad. But we’re looking forward to that challenge. It’s exciting for us to play against the host nation in the semi-final. We know they’re going to be a threat, but we’re looking forward to that challenge,” said Conway in a chat with New Zealand Cricket (NZC).
New Zealand have been a consistent side in terms of entering World Cup knockouts. They were semi-finalists in the 2011 World Cup, before being runners-up in 2015 and 2019 editions. Their big challenge in the semi-final, in what is a re-match of the 2019 World Cup last-four meeting, will be against an unbeaten Indian team.
Conway has been a regular with New Zealand since his debut in late 2020, earning a World Test Championship win apart from a runners-up finish in 2021 T20 World Cup and a semi-final spot in 2022 edition of the event. Moreover, eight members from the 2019 World Cup final are in the current tournament in India.
“We can acknowledge this is another special occasion for us. We’re fortunate enough to have a lot of experience in our camp, guys who have been in these situations before. We can lean on those guys.”