London: England finally end their long 44-year wait to raise the World Cup.
Neither a tied game, nor a spirited New Zealand could stop England from bringing the trophy home at the Lord’s on Sunday. It finally took a Super Over for England to be crowned winners of the 2019 World Cup.
Eoin Morgan’s boys are the new world champions in the 50-over format of the gentleman’s game and the crown couldn’t have come at a better place than the historic Lord’s, the home of cricket.
Ben Stokes will go down in history as one of England’s best all-rounders. After all, he managed what even the great Ian Botham failed to achieve in Australia in 1992.
England’s Mark Wood being run out off the last-ball of the innings saw the game end in a tie and a Super Over followed. The first-ever Super Over in a World Cup final saw England score 15 runs before the Kiwis also ended on 15, but the hosts won due to more boundaries scored in the game. Cometh the hour, cometh the men.
First it was Jos Buttler who rose to the occasion by hitting a swashbuckling 60-ball 59 and then all-rounder Ben Stokes (84* off 98 balls) took off from where he left to help England win their maiden World Cup title. Their 110-run partnership was the backbone of a well-earned win for the Three Lions.Chasing New Zealand’s score of 241/8, the hosts returned home victorious in front of the jam-packed crowd that would have sore throats walking into office on Monday.
Sadly for New Zealand, it was another case of finishing runners-up after their loss to Australia in the 2015 World Cup final. But this time they competed well and it was a game that had the fans on their toes till Buttler and Stokes took the game away with their calculated power hitting.
Losing Jason Roy (17) early meant that Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow needed to stitch a partnership and while they did try their best, the Kiwi bowlers bowled a tight line to ensure that the scoreboard didn’t move as the Englishmen would have liked. Frustration finally seeped in as Root (7 off 30 balls) went for a wild drive outside off to edge one to Tom Latham behind the stumps.
That brought Bairstow and skipper Eoin Morgan together but the duo failed to keep up the tempo and it looked like New Zealand would once again run away with the game as they did in the semifinal against India.
In fact, with Matt Henry dismissing Bairstow (played on for 36) and James Neesham sending back Morgan (9), caught brilliantly Lockie Ferguson, it looked like New Zealand might pull this off. But Buttler and Stokes knew just when to hit the fifth gear and bring England back into the game. Earlier, winning the toss and batting first in overcast conditions New Zealand scored 241/8 in their 50 overs. The conditions weren’t most suited for batting, but the Kiwis did well. If Henry Nicholls started well at the top with a dogged half-century, Tom Latham made it count at the end with a knock of 47. For England, it was another quality show from Liam Plunkett as he pegged the Kiwis back every time they looked to take the attack to the English bowlers. (IANS)
New Zealand: 241/8 in 50 overs
Martin Guptill lbw b Chris Woakes 19
Henry Nicholls b Plunkett 55
Kane Williamson c Jos Buttler b Plunkett 30
Ross Taylor lbw b Mark Wood 15
Tom Latham c J Vince b Chris Woakes 47
James Neesham c Root b Plunkett 19
C de Grandhomme c J Vince b Woakes 16
Mitchell Santner not out 5
Matt Henry b Jofra Archer 4
Trent Boult not out 1
Extras: (lb-12, w-17, nb-1) 30
Bowling: Chris Woakes 9-0-37-3,
Jofra Archer 10-0-42-1, Liam Plunkett 10-0-42-3,
Mark Wood 10-1-49-1, Adil Rashid 8-0-39-0,
Ben Stokes 3-0-20-0.
England: 241 all out in 50 oversJason Roy c Latham b M Henry 17
Jonny Bairstow b Ferguson 36
Joe Root c Latham b de Grandhomme 7
Eoin Morgan c Ferguson b Neesham 9
Ben Stokes not out 84
Jos Buttler c (sub)Southee b Ferguson 59
Chris Woakes c Latham b Ferguson 2
Liam Plunkett c Boult b Neesham 10
Jofra Archer b Neesham 0
Adil Rashid run out 0
Mark Wood run out 0
Extras: (B-2, LB-3, WD-12) 17
Bowling: Trent Boult 10-0-67-00, Henry 10-2-40-1,
Colin de Grandhomme 10-2-25-1,
Lockie Ferguson 10-0-50-3, James Neesham 7-0-43-3,
Mitchell Santner 3-0-11-0. (PTI)
Mitchell Santner 3-0-11-0. (PTI)