“ 15 runs needed off 6 balls”
45 days and 48 matches of engrossing cricket had all come down to this equation. The
eyes of the entire cricketing world were focused on a quiet corner of St John’s Wood in
London, where the Mecca of cricket, Lord’s Cricket Ground had stood since 1814. The
subject of attention, the final of the 2019 ICC cricket world cup where two sides were
duking it out on the hallowed turf with the shared ambition of world cup glory. In one
corner, perennial dark horses New Zealand, aiming to avenge the heartbreak of losing
the 2015 world cup final . In the other corner, perennial underachievers England, who
despite having invented the beautiful game, were yet to lay hands on the most coveted
prize in it. In a way it was fitting that these two teams faced off in the final, since
England, after a dismal 2015 campaign, overhauled their entire approach to the one
day game, adopting a new fearless brand of cricket inspired by the way in which New
Zealand played in the 2015 tournament. Four years later, England had put together
what was arguably the most feared batting lineup in the modern game and were in
touching distance of the trophy they so desperately craved.
It was amidst this background that the previous 99 overs of play had led to the very last
over of the game.In a tournament of middling scores it was fitting that the final was of
the same nature, New Zealand having put up a decent total of 241, after which they
bowled and fielded out of their skins to bring the game to a point, with England needing
15 runs with just 2 wickets in the bank where they were slight favourites. However, in
their way stood Ben Stokes, playing out his own redemption arc after a ban for
ill-discipline which cost England dearly in the Ashes and who had shown time and time
again his penchant for digging England out of tight spots. Speaking of redemption, what
about the man tasked with delivering the final over, Trent Boult, one of the premier
bowlers in cricket but who had just dropped a catch from Stokes in the previous over.
You often hear the cliche about no second chances in sports, but here was that rare
contradiction. The question was if Boult would take it or if Stokes would be England’s
saviour once again
“15 runs needed off 6 balls”
Boult delivers on his reputation and delivers an inch perfect yorker which Stokes can
only jab out to point. He declines the single on offer. He knows he can’t trust anyone
else to do the job. If England are going to win the world cup, Ben Stokes is going to
have to go it alone.
“15 runs needed off 5 balls”
Another yorker, another declined single. No one doubts that Stokes has the ability but
the pressure on him is building up to a crescendo….
“15 runs needed off 4 balls”
….. And Stokes delivers with a massive six over mid wicket.If there is a physical
embodiment of, “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going,” it was Ben Stokes in
this moment. Now the pressure is back on Boult
“9 runs needed off 3 balls”
This match has honestly had more plot twists than an Indian soap opera. Just when you
think the drama has reached its climax there is still another twist in the tale waiting to
surprise you. Boult reverts to his plan of bowling yorkers and the ball is played out to
midwicket. Stokes in his need to retain the strike is sprinting back for two. The man
fielding the ball is Martin Guptill,who has had a dismal world cup but now has the
chance to win the world cup for his team. He fires in a throw and Stokes dives
desperately to preserve his wicket….. In the words on commentator Ian Smith, this is
what happened next, “ Oh he gets in the way! This is gonna go all the way to the
boundary off the bat. Can you believe this?!” I don’t think anyone could believe it
including Stokes who immediately apologizes but the damage is already done. In all the
confusion, it later emerged that umpire Kumar Dharmasena should only have awarded
5 runs instead of 6 but this was an unprecedented scenario.
“3 runs off 2 balls”
We all know what happens next. England are firmly in control with Stokes still at the
crease. He drives the ball down to long off and again rushes back for two but the throw
is on target at the non-striker’s end and Adil Rashid is caught well short.
“2 runs off 1 ball”
Again the ball is bunted down to long on and again the batsmen sprint for two. Once
again the throw is accurate to the bowler’s end and the batsman is well short. So, after
100 overs and 8 hours of play the two teams cannot be separated. The scores are tied
and the game goes to cricket’s equivalent of a penalty shootout, the super over, a single
over face-off. People speak in hushed tones of the 1999 world cup semi final between
Australia and South Africa, which is widely considered the greatest ODI of all time but
this match has surely rivalled if not surpassed it in terms of drama and intensity.
The Super Over
On virtue of having batted second, England would be going first in the super over. Out
strode two of the most explosive members of England’s much vaunted batting lineup,
Jos Buttler and that man again, Stokes. With the ball for New Zealand was another
familiar protagonist, Trent Boult. The super over itself was a commendable effort from
England, who scored 15 runs with the help of a boundary apiece from Buttler and
Stokes , a challenging total but not completely out of reach of New Zealand.
As might have become clear to the reader by now, this is a tale of second chances and
tight margins. With 16 runs needed for a New Zealand victory out strode Martin Guptill,
no doubt aching to make up for that costly throw and Jimmy Neesham, who had just
missed out on the 2015 squad but had seized his chance 4 years later to write his name
into New Zealand sporting folklore. With the ball was Jofra Archer, the newest and
quickest member of England’s bowling lineup who had only qualified to represent
England a few weeks before the tournament through a rule change specifically for what
was thought to be a generational talent. Now it was his chance to repay the faith shown
in him, both by the board as well as the captain in entrusting the most inexperienced
member of the side with the most important over of them all.
Archer seemed to be nervous, starting off with a wide and when the second ball was
dispatched for six by Neesham the balance of the game seemed to be shifting New
Zealand’s way but Archer fought back to bring it down to a familiar equation, “2 runs off
1 ball” . To add to the drama, the ICC regulations stipulated that if the super over was
tied the side who had scored the most boundaries would win, in this case England, so
New Zealand knew they had to win outright. Facing was Guptill with one final chance for
redemption. Archer ran up and delivered an accurate full delivery which was played out
to midwicket who fired in the throw to Buttler. To hand it over to Ian Smith once again,
“He’s got it! England have won the world cup! By the barerest of margins, by the barest
of all margins. Absolute ecstasy for England! Agony, agony for New Zealand”
On a day where both sides couldn’t be separated over 100 overs, no over an additional
two overs was it fair that England walked away with glory but New Zealand did not, just
because they scored more boundaries. Was it fair that maybe the most universally
loved player in world cricket, Kane Williamson, the New Zealand skipper who had
dragged his team almost single handedly to the final walked away with a runner’s up
medal while England’s Irish born captain, Eoin Morgan, the leader and possibly most
crucial member of the team got to lay his hands on the coveted trophy. That is a debate
that could carry on until the end of time, but what ultimately mattered was that England
were the winners of the 2019 cricket world cup. And that is the beauty and cruelty of
sport. A matter of inches, the smallest margins can be the difference between ecstasy
and agony. And if we can’t handle that I will let Jimmy Neesham’s poignant tweet after
the final speak for you. “ Kids, don’t take up sport. Take up baking or something. Die at
60 really fat and happy.”
Rtr. Rahul Jeyanthan
Editor
Editor