Just watched it on Sky and then turned back to Radio 5, which was about 20 minutes behind. Alastair Cook just called it the best ever innings by an Englishman and I make him right. Just brilliant.
Log in black caps How the Black Caps may have erred in their World Cup Super Over loss Ian Anderson12:09, Apr 15 2020 New Zealand may have made some crucial tactical errors in their Super Over loss to England in last year's World Cup final. England got most things right - particularly with their batting - and yet the Black Caps still got within a run of winning the tournament in one of the most dramatic finishes in cricket history. An article - How to win a Super Over - in the new Vox Cricket online magazine by cricket data analyst Ed Bayliss shows that England used premium tactics when batting first in the Super Over at Lord's after scores were tied at the end of the 50 overs per side. please log in to view this image GETTY IMAGES Jos Buttler of England celebrates running out Martin Guptill of New Zealand to seal victory for England. New Zealand's downfall may have been the use of Trent Boult to bowl the Super Over - despite few disputing the decision at the time, while England had a significant advantage batting first. READ MORE: * The Kiwi who busted Aussie cheats * Stokes named cricketer of year In 11 years, with 132 Super Overs being contested in elite white-ball cricket, the number of wins by teams batting first or second is exactly the same, at 66 victories apiece. But Bayliss wrote that from the 69 Super Over contests with data available, the team batting first should win more often - especially if they follow Note 1 - to score at least 12 runs batting first. England made 15 through Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler, which Bayliss described as a "strong position" - teams scoring between 14-18 batting first in a Super Over have done so 24 times and won on 16 occasions. They did this by following Note 2 from Bayliss - pick a set batsman if batting first. please log in to view this image GETTY IMAGES Trent Boult of New Zealand looks dejected following his side's defeat in the ICC Cricket World Cup. "The chasing team gets a big edge by batting first in the Super Over ... they can return a set batsman to the crease, who will score faster than a new batsman," Bayliss wrote. "'T20 batsmen need a few balls to settle: on their first ball they score at 58 per cent of their potential. By the fourth ball they are up to 80 per cent. Players that had been batting within the last six overs of the chase score 23 per cent faster than those that were dismissed earlier in the innings. "England did this effectively in the 2019 World Cup final, by retaining Ben Stokes. He scored eight from three, helping take the game from NZ's grasp," Bayliss wrote. Butler also fitted the criteria - he had made 59 off 60 and was dismissed in the 45th over. Stokes - who had just made an unbeaten 84 from 98 balls in England's tied chase in regulation - faced the first ball from Boult; meeting Note 6 of Bayliss's criteria - put the best batsman on strike for the first ball. "On average, the first batsman faces 3.3 balls, the second 2.1 and the third 0.6," said Bayliss, while teams should also take into account "who is bowling, career records, how settled the batsman are." please log in to view this image GETTY IMAGES Ben Stokes was used perfectly by England in the Super Over. New Zealand captain Kane Williamson opted for Boult to bowl the Super Over. He was regarded as the country's best white-ball bowler and had just bowled a strong final over when England needed 15 to win - two dot balls to start with, a six from Stokes, then the unlucky six (that should have been ruled five) and then singles from the last two balls that both resulted in run-outs. Yet Boult's 10-over figures for the game were an ugly 0-67. Fellow new-ball bowler Matt Henry had taken 1-40 off 10 while Colin de Grandhomme was the bowling star with 1-25 off 10. Boult had dismissed Stokes twice in 10 ODIs previously (Stokes had never faced Boult in a T20 international) while the left-armer had removed Buttler just twice in 11 ODIs and never in five T20s. Bowling Henry or de Grandhomme would have been a brave call by Williamson - and no doubt he would have been crucified if he had and either of that duo had conceded a big over. But there was enough evidence available - the bowling captain in the Super Over can choose his bowler after knowing who will open for the opposition - to suggest there could have been a better choice than Boult. That included left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner, who bowled three overs for 11 earlier and both Stokes and Buttler had often fallen to spin in their white-ball appearances against the Black Caps. please log in to view this image GETTY IMAGES Chris Woakes of England offers his hand to Martin Guptill of New Zealand following the Super Over. In Note 5 - Pick a bowler to trouble their opening batsmen - Bayliss writes that "fielding teams should make use of the info available re the batsmen they're facing ... with analysts primed to nominate the right bowler." England skipper Eoin Morgan made a bold choice with his Super Over bowler to combat Jimmy Neesham and Martin Guptill - relative rookie Jofra Archer, who earlier took 1-42 off his 10 overs; in comparison to the more experienced seam duo of Chris Woakes (3-37 off nine) and Liam Plunkett (3-42 off 10). Woakes had dismissed Guptill, Plunket got James Neesham, while Archer's sole wicket was Matt Henry in the final over. Williamson opted for Neesham and Guptill to bat and the numbers backed him - veteran opener Guptill had a career T20 (more relevant than ODI stats in a Super Over) strike-rate of 134.6 and that grew to 145.48 when playing England. Neesham's was 141.22 and a whopping 165.78 v England. please log in to view this image GETTY IMAGES Trent Boult bowled the Super Over for New Zealand in the 2019 World Cup final. De Grandhomme may have been the other option - his T20 strike-rate was 143.23, and 164 against England. However, he'd struggled during his earlier innings (16 off 28 balls) against Archer's pace. Neesham faced the first ball (a wide) and ended up facing five legitimate deliveries (making 13 not out) while Guptill got to face just one ball. As we agonisingly know, he was run out coming back for the second run that would have won the Cup. The World Cup rules (scores tied in the Super Over gave victory to the team that had recorded most boundaries in the match) meant the final key note from the analysis of Bayliss - plan for a second Super Over, which is the norm for ICC playing conditions - never eventuated
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