Ecstasy For England, Agony For New Zealand In A Humdinger

After 102 overs of intense cricket at Lord’s, it boils down to boundaries after the match and Super Over are tied

- K.C. Vijaya Kumar

This wasn’t a final for the faint-hearted. It was the kind that threatened nails, fastened hearts and quadrupled pure pressure and left both players and fans gob-smacked.

New Zealand scored 241 for eight, England, after thriving on Ben Stokes (84 n.o.), was bowled out for 241. The World Cup’s summit clash was tied and a super-over was needed to break the stalemate at Lord’s.

The mad over

As a tense Sunday evening waned, England scored 15 with Stokes and Jos Buttler having a biff against Trent Boult. And guess what? New Zealand replied with 15 too, with James Neesham clouting a six off Jofra Archer in a mad over that ended once Martin Guptill got run-out while going for the winning run. Yet, England prevailed as it had more boundaries (26) than what New Zealand (17) scored through the pulsating contest.

England champions, New Zealand runners-up by a hair’s breadth. This was a game for the ages, it was a glorious amalgamation of thrills, heart-break and tears, both from joy and soul numbing grief.

In the afternoon, on a pitch that wasn’t a featherbed, England needed its powerful openers Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow to lay the base. Nervous energy rippled as of his very first ball, Boult rapped Roy’s pad. The lbw claim never materialised, but Boult and Matt Henry kept luring tentative willows. One such endeavour from Henry forced Roy to nibble and England lost its marauder.