From a losing position in the match to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 finals, it was a thriller of a chase by the Kiwis. New Zealand won from the jaws of defeat, and they got their revenge for the 2019 50-over World Cup finals. Even though England lost the toss, they started well with the bat and put up a good total on the board in a big match. Early wickets put England in control of the game, putting the Kiwis under immense pressure until the final three overs of the chase.
Eoin Morgan and his men did everything right and were cruising to yet another World Cup final, but it was the Neesham hurricane that secured a win for NZ, along with some excellent batting by Daryl Mitchell.
England’s strong start with the bat
England suffered a huge loss in the form of their opening batter Jason Roy, who got injured in the previous match. They had to make a few changes in their batting order, with Jonny Bairstow opening alongside Jos Buttler and Sam Billings batting down the order. The new opening pair was cautious at the start and scored just 40 runs at 6.67 RPO. It was Adam Milne, who then broke the shackles and took the wicket of Bairstow in the last over of Powerplay, and soon after, Buttler followed his opening partner to the dressing room.
Moeen Ali and Dawid Malan then batted through and steadied the innings with a partnership of 63 runs off 43 balls. The star with the bat was veteran all-rounder Moeen Ali. He scored a good half-century off 37 balls at an amazing strike rate of 150. England finished off the innings well as they scored 56 runs off the last five overs at an incredible rate of 11.2 RPO, thanks to a 10-ball 17 runs innings by Liam Livingstone.
England had a decent score on the board, and in a big match like this, it seemed a pretty good total, which they could defend with their experienced bowling unit.
New Zealand’s breath-taking chase
Woakes crashed through the Kiwis during the powerplay and picked up the two most experienced Kiwi batters, first Martin Guptill and then the captain, Kane Williamson. They got out due to the slow nature of the pitch, and because of no dew, the ball didn’t come on to the bat as well as expected by both the veterans.
Devon Conway then joined Daryl Mitchell, and both then steadied the ship and forged a brilliant partnership of 82 off 67 balls. As Conway departed before his well-deserved fifty, England were back on top of the game.
With the early departure of Glenn Philips, in came the mighty all-rounder, James Neesham, who had the day of his life. He did exactly what Ben Stokes did in the 2019 World Cup Final, hitting everything out of the middle of the bat. The equation was next to impossible when Neesham came in to bat, as Kiwi’s needed 57 off 24 balls. One would have never imagined that they managed to score that with six balls remaining. Neesham and Mitchell’s partnership of 40 from 17 balls saw the Kiwis reach yet another final.
Credit must be given to the new opening batter for New Zealand, Mitchell, who battled through tough situations and scored 72 off just 47 balls at a whopping strike rate of 153.19. He batted throughout the innings and deservedly earned the Player of the Match award. He saw the Kiwis through the finish line and their third consecutive ICC event finals.
Conclusion: Kiwis book Final’s berth
England topped their group with four wins out of five, but they failed to win against their 2019 World Cup finalist, New Zealand. The Kiwis got their well-deserved revenge in a thriller against Eoin Morgan’s men. They are through to yet another final and have removed the tag of chokers from their necks. The Test Champions are eyeing their second consecutive ICC trophy of the year, and it will be a great achievement for Williamson and his men if they accomplish this feat.
Australia and Pakistan fight against each other tonight in Dubai, and one of them will join the incredible Kiwis. Williamson and the whole of New Zealand would wish for yet another complete performance and some magical batting efforts from the whole team to lift their first ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.