A do-or-die game for both teams, New Zealand vs England was promised to be a great encounter. To have a ‘Q’ next to their names, both sides needed a win. 2 points. That’s what the teams were fighting for.
England looked ruthless after winning the toss and batting first. Jason Roy again got a start but failed to convert. But Jonny Bairstow, just like the previous game against India, looked unstoppable. Smashing 15 fours and a solitary six in his innings of 106, the Yorkshire keeper looked in sublime form. It took 123 runs before New Zealand could get their first breakthrough.
Courtesy a stable innings from the skipper Eoin Morgan, England ended up with 305/8 after their 50 overs. It looked like NZ had done well to restrict the home side to under 320, but what happened next was not something anyone was expecting. The visiting side had won 4 out of their 5 won games chasing. That is a sign that they’re a pretty good chasing side. The only problem being, nobody apart from Kane Williamson has stood out. To say that they’re reliant on their skipper’s performance would be an understatement.
The NZ innings never took off. In fact, it just looked like they were sliding down a quick sand. Tom Latham along with Ross Taylor tried to string together a partnership, but their efforts just wasn’t enough. New Zealand crumbled to 186, losing by a massive margin of 119 runs.
-Vibhor Dubey
The Average Cricketer 