By reaching the semi-finals, New Zealand showed yet again that their steady brand of cricket will reliably see them competing with the world beaters. But, if they want to break their trophy duck, maybe it’s time to try something new, writes Katya Witney.

There was no shock when New Zealand lost in Mumbai. India are the dominant side in this tournament, still the best of the bunch even if they don’t go on to seal the trophy. That they were able to bring themselves back into the game, having conceded almost 400 runs against the home juggernaut, is a credit to them.

Two finals in a row, and now fallen just short of the third. The anguish was written in Kane Williamson’s reaction to holing out when he and Daryl Mitchell had just given them a sniff. Bent backwards, face screwed up, the man central to New Zealand’s modern story who had battled through two injuries for what is surely one last personal shot at the trophy, he was the final seal in their demise.

Even when they looked like India’s closest rivals in the early group stages, there was a slight tentativeness of how good New Zealand actually were. As ever, there was no shock result. No loss to the Netherlands, they saw off Afghanistan and beat everyone they were supposed to. Their formula, although less rigid than in the past, was clear once more. Bat long, take the game deep.

In the absence of Williamson for most of the tournament, the bulk of that responsibility fell on Mitchell’s shoulders. His incredible cross-format run from the last two years evident once again in the weight of consistent runs he scored in the competition. An unbeaten 89 against Bangladesh, before 130 against India, and another century in the semi-final – both of Mitchell’s centuries came in losing causes. When there was no one else able to stand up, Mitchell has fast become New Zealand’s crutch.

But the headlines rightly will go to Rachin Ravindra. In the series against England New Zealand played before flying to India, there was little indication that Ravindra would make a mark on the World Cup with the ball. But at Lord’s, he fired a warning shot the bat that few paid enough attention to to predict what was coming. There are fewer more joyous stories than a previously unknown youngster stealing some of the spotlight from the greats during a World Cup. Add in the story – we’ll choose to believe his own version of events on this one – behind his name and the tournament’s location, there’s your fairy tale.

The start of something new mixed with some farewells can aptly sum New Zealand’s tournament up. All eyes are on Ravindra for the future, but aside from Williamson, there are a fair few of New Zealand’s squad who won’t make the next tournament. Trent Boult, already without a central contract, will surely permanently join the franchise circuit. Tim Southee also falls into that category. The remaining triad of New Zealand’s modern success has left the World Cup stage quietly, but respectably.

There’s an unshakable feeling, however, that this is the right time. How far New Zealand have come over the last 20 years is a testament to many things and people, but Brendon McCullum’s legacy on the field and Williamson’s quiet yet authoritative stature, along with two modern-great fast-bowlers, have driven the on-field success. But that success is still trophy-less, and to make the next step, they need to find another gear.

That quiet confidence Williamson brings needs to turn into brashness, into complete and utter belief not just that they can beat anyone on their day, but that they will beat everyone on any day. The minor post-mortems will point to the mounting injuries New Zealand picked up during the tournament, Tom Latham and Devon Conway’s under-par few weeks and whether the depth in their squad was enough to count for all of these. Rightly so. But winning World Cups isn’t about perfection, it’s about finding a way through and another level of performance in the face of everything falling apart. That’s what England did in 2019, and whichever side wins it this year, that’s what they will have done.

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