The much-awaited quadrennial ODI World Cup final lived up to the expectations of millions, as nothing could distinguish between England and New Zealand, even after 100 overs of cricketing action.
To decide the winners, a high-octane Super Over took place and even then, the two teams scored the same amount of runs.
However, a bizarre boundary-count rule, which was scrapped later, helped the host being crowned world champions of ODI cricket.
During the Super Over, a maximum of three batsmen can be nominated by one side to face six deliveries from the bowler from the opposition.
New Zealand captain, Kane Williamson sent Jimmy Neesham and Martin Guptill to face the music in the middle. Now, Williamson has opened up about the reason behind sending the two batters to face Jofra Archer.
“I had a very brief discussion with the coach Gary Stead. We had a few guys in my mind who could go out to bat as we were going to bat second in the Super Over. The decision to send out batsmen was dependent on how much we were chasing and who the bowler is probably going to be,” Kane Williamson told Ravichandran Ashwin on his YouTube show ‘DRS with Ash’.
Williamson credited Neesham’s hitting form throughout the tournament and Guptill’s ability to take quick singles as the primary reason behind the decision of sending them to chase down the English total.
“It was about giving yourself with the best possible opportunity. Neesham was hitting the ball very well throughout the World Cup, and we all know how capable Guptill is of hitting the ball out of the park, there was a short boundary on one side of the ground. They are both quicks between the 22 yards, so this helped too.” Williamson added.
The Black Caps’ skipper persisted with Guptill despite his lean patch with the bat in the tournament.
The only prominent contribution from Guptill was the direct-hit from the deep which dismissed MS Dhoni in the semi-finals of the tournament, eventually helping New Zealand book their berth in the final.
“I was padded up to come in at three. It was a different experience to be a part of, both Neesham and Guptill did a good job. Jofra Archer is a remarkable bowler, emotions were so high after the final, it was a long tournament when the time comes, and it finishes, it’s like a draining feeling as all of it finishes. The guys were filled with emotion after what really transpired,” Williamson concluded.
