Jon Anderson: Farcical World Cup finish must never be repeated
The ICC must ensure the nature of England’s incredible World Cup victory over New Zealand can never be repeated, writes JON ANDERSON.
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How sad that the finest one day international in cricketing history should come down to such an unsatisfactory conclusion.
To ultimately separate England and New Zealand by total boundaries scored was a injustice, a ruling introduced in 2010 that has never been previously implement at a World Cup. And hopefully never will be again.
Neither of those teams deserved to lose that match, but if you have to lose it then let it happen in the field of play.
You can argue that penalties are an ordinary way to decide a soccer match, but at least the players are using their skills to determine the outcome.
New Zealand is not a cricketing nation that complains, yet it is one that could rightfully argue it lost eight wickets during its main innings as compared with England losing 10.
Or that given the match twice ended in ties, then the World Cup should have been shared, even if we live in a society that always demands a winner.
And then there was the option of bowling another super over, the equivalent of a golf championship when they play on until the last person is standing.
The ending shouldn’t detract from what England achieved, ironically on the back of a man named Ben Stokes who spent the first 12 years of his life being raised in New Zealand by Kiwi parents. But hopefully the ICC will ensure the nature of their epic win can never be repeated.
Originally published as Jon Anderson: Farcical World Cup finish must never be repeated
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