Cricket World Cup 2019: Matt Henry pleased as Blackcaps execute gameplan to perfection

Blackcaps hero Matt Henry was pleased with the way New Zealand executed their gameplan to perfection in their 18-run win over India at Old Trafford.

Before the match, Blackcaps bowling coach Shane Jurgensen said it was vital to remove India's star opening batsman early to put pressure on their middle order - and that's exactly what New Zealand did.

After setting India 240 for victory in the rain-affected match, man-of-the-match Henry and Trent Boult blew away India's star-studded top order - that including captain Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, the tournament's leading scorer - reducing them to 5/3 inside four overs.

"We thought, if we get to 240, it would be a defendable total and it wasn't going to be easy, if we bowled well," Henry told The AM Show.

"We tried to get early wickets and we applied some early pressure, and thankfully we came out on the right side." 

The Blackcaps will face the winners of the second semi-final between England and Australia in Sunday's final at Lord's.

Henry said he wasn't fussed on who New Zealand faced.

"They're both good sides, Australia has been playing good cricket and England is at home.

"It will be a tight game, it doesn't matter who it is. You want to play Australia, but to play England at home in a World Cup final is a special prospect."

But former Blackcaps all-rounder Chris Harris wants the chance to face Australia to redeem the heartbreak of 2015.

"I'd love to play Australia at Lord's, but I couldn't bear for us to lose to them again," he told The AM Show.

"We've been there in 2015, which was a dress rehearsal, so hopefully we can go one better on Sunday.

"I'm sure we can beat Australia, if we come up against them. If we get an early breakthrough and put pressure on the middle order, we can beat them as well."

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