New Zealand defeated England by 5 wickets in the Semi-Final on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi to reach the 2021 T20 World Cup Finals.
In a closely-contested semi-final clash, Blackcaps chased a target of 167 runs in 19 overs. Jonny Bairstow (England) and Jimmy Neesham (New Zealand) are the highlighted players in this match while 17th over can be termed as the crucial over for both teams.
Turning point of the match
England seemed to be in a commanding position in the match till the 17 over as New Zealand were at 110/4 and needed 57 runs from 24 balls.
17th Over –
- 1st delivery – Neesham smashed Jordan for a six
- 2nd delivery – no runs
- 3rd delivery – a four
- 4th delivery – a wide
- 5th delivery – Neesham received a slower delivery which he hacked high towards the leg side. a rushing Jonny Bairstow dived to try and catch the ball but fell on the boundary ropes before passing it to Liam Livingstone to try and complete the attempt. Replays showed that Bairstow’s knee had hit the rope before he could pass the ball to his teammate.
Watch the Video here: (Source ICC)
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This incident changed the match scenario. England which looked like making it to the finals, had to face a defeat. Neesham had put NZ in a strong position to wrap up proceedings even after his departure as Mitchell hammered 3 boundaries to win the game for New Zealand in the 19th overs in his spell of 72 off 47 balls. Neesham smashed 27 runs off 11 balls to accelerate his side’s chase. Devon Conway’s knock of 46 runs has also helped the NZ’s win.
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Initially, England posted 166 for four in 20 overs with Moeen Ali smashing an unbeaten knock of 51 off 37 balls. Dawid Malan put 41 runs along with Moeen Ali.
New Zealand bowlers Tim Southee, Adam Milne, Ish Sodhi, James Neesham claimed a wicket each. On the other side, England bowlers Chris Woakes and Liam Livingstone claimed 2 wickets each while Adil Rashid took a wicket.
Match Info
Venue : Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Toss : New Zealand won the toss and elected to field
Umpires : Kumar Dharmasena (SL), Marais Erasmus (SA) and Nitin Menon (IND)
Referee : David Boon (AUS)
Result : New Zealand beat England by 5 wickets
Player of the Match : Daryl Mitchell
Scores : England 166/4 (20 Overs), New Zealand 167/5 (19 Overs)
Other Highlights : D Mitchell maiden T20I half-century