Ton-up Kohli, Iyer power India to an imposing 397 for four at batting-friendly Wankhede

Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (Pic: AFP)

Virat Kohli's world record 50th ODI hundred and a scintillating century by Shreyas Iyer propelled India to an imposing 397 for four against New Zealand in the first semifinal of the World Cup on Wednesday.

Rohit Sharma's (47 off 29 balls) pyrotechnics, tons by Kohli (117 off 113) and Iyer (105 off 70), and a fluent 65-ball 79 by Shubman Gill, who retired hurt due to cramps, powered India after the skipper won a good toss.

Rohit, as is his wont, went after the bowling straightaway, and almost killed the contest in the first hour of play at the Wankhede Stadium, his dazzling array of stokes leaving the Kiwis bruised and battered.

Also Read: A date with destiny at Wankhede

Going for one too many, Rohit fell for a 29-ball 47 but Gill took over from there and continued to torment the Kiwis with his repertoire of strokes.

After Gill was forced to go back, Kohli and Iyer carried on the good work to set New Zealand an improbable target. Gill, though, came back and remained not out on 80 off 66 balls.

During the course of his innings, Kohli also became the first batter in the history of the game to score 50 ODI centuries, going past his idol Sachin Tendulkar.

Three of the four previous tournament games at the Wankhede have been won by the team batting first, with the exception Australia's stunning defeat of Afghanistan, where Glenn Maxwell's remarkable 201 not out secured a three-wicket victory.

India won all nine of their pool matches, but were pushed hard by New Zealand during a four-wicket success in Dharamsala last month. New Zealand, by contrast, lost four games before qualifying for the knockout stages.

Exactly four years ago, the Black Caps defeated India in a World Cup semi-final in Manchester that spanned two days because of rain. India are bidding for a third one-day international World Cup title to add to their 1983 triumph in England and 2011 victory over Sri Lanka in a Wankhede final.

New Zealand, the finalists at the last two World Cups, have yet to lift the trophy. Wednesday's winners will face either five-time champions Australia or South Africa, who meet in Thursday's second semi-final in Kolkata, in an Ahmedabad final on Sunday.

(With agency inputs)