After edging past India in a tense 3rd Test at Lord’s which England won by 22 runs, captain Ben Stokes shared a hilarious conversation with pacer Jofra Archer ahead of the 5th day’s play on Sunday. This was the same date (July 14) where on 6 years ago, England had won the 2019 World Cup with Archer and Stokes both playing pivotal roles. But according to Stokes, Archer got confused over the date and thought it was the day India had chased 326 to win the NatWest final at Lord’s in 2002.
“You know what day today is, don’t you?” Stokes had asked Archer. “You know that highlight package of India knocking off 300-odd back in the day with Ganguly? He thought that was a World Cup final. He thought that was six years ago today. Absolute beauty, that boy,” Stokes revealed to the reporters after the 3rd Test on Sunday.
6 years ago, England had won the World Cup 2019 on basis of hitting more boundaries than New Zealand in the final. The match was a tie after 50 overs as well as after the Super Over. This was the first time England had won the World Cup title and also the first time a 50-over World Cup was decided after the Super Over.
Stokes did not have much of a role to play in the first innings, but he played one of the innings of his life in the second one with the England side in crisis. When Jos Buttler came out to join him, England were struggling at 86/4 in the 24th over, their World Cup dreams threatening to evaporate. His 110-run partnership with Buttler brought the chase back to life. Not only that, with signs of mental exhaustion writ large on his face, he marshalled the England lower order to take the match to a Super Over by taking a single off the last ball. Not surprisingly, he was one of the batsmen nominated by England to bat in the Super Over.
In the Super Over, Stokes and Buttler came out to bat for England and plundered 15 runs in the one over bowled by Trent Boult. Archer took the ball for England, while New Zealand sent out Martin Guptill and Jimmy Neesham. Neesham got off to a great start but there was a run out off the last ball. England were awarded the match for their superior boundary count.
