England and Australia, whenever these two arch-rivals meet, one can vouch that it is going to be one for the history books. They met in the 2nd semi-final of the Cricket World Cup 2019 and the match had all sorts of action. While England was looking to make the most of their regained momentum to make it to the finals, Australia wanted to retain their title of world champions. It was England’s chance to get their maiden World Cup trophy. They had to give their all and boy, they did. This was as close as they could have gotten and they had to capitalize. We take you through how the drama unfolded, bit-by-bit.
The Target
Credits: India Today
The toss was the only thing that England could have afforded to lose. Batting first, Australia couldn’t get the start they wanted as both Aaron Finch and David Warner were dismissed in a span of mere 16 balls. Australia were reeling to find the revival and England were resolute to never let them settle. Both Archer and Woakes bowled the first spells with perfection and put England on top, right from the get-go; and then it was Rashid’s turn to make it difficult for the Aussie middle-order. Steve Smith and Alex Carey tried to fight back, but the latter wasn’t up for Archer’s challenge.
The Challenge
Image Credits: Twitter/Jofra Archer
Archer had issued a warning to batsmen all around the world and poor Carey became the victim of the said challenge. Australian bowlers should have done it for him as the wicketkeeper-batsman took one for the team. Even after the severe blow to the chin, which had him bleeding and in need of stitches, Alex batted. Such moments make us love the game even more.
The Chase
Credits: Reuters
224 was always something that England would have chased comfortably, considering the form of their openers, Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow. By the time England reached the semis, Roy had made a significant impact on England cricket as he pulled them back from the gallows with his performance at crucial times. He continued to keep at it and was determined to see England through to the finals. Mitchell Starc tried doing what he does best, but he was completely outplayed by the deadly duo. Roy was cruising along and was looking to do it single-handedly, but alas it wasn’t meant to happen.
The Controversy
Credits: Hindustan Times
Roy was batting brilliantly until his innings was cut short by a poor decision. Batting on 85, he tried to play the pull shot on Pat Cummins’ bouncer. Kumar Dharmasena was initially signaling it a wide but then raised his finger to declare Jason Roy out, when the Australians appealed for a caught behind. The English opener was left furious and signaled for a DRS when he was reminded that England had already used their only one and failed at it when Bairstow was given LBW. Things got ugly as Roy got in a rather aggravated discussion with the on-ground umpires. The onus was then on Root and Morgan to end England’s wait of 27 years to make an appearance in the final and they did it rather easily in the end with their partnership of 79 runs.
The Performance
Credits: Firstpost
It was a team effort and every player was dedicated to making it happen for the English. They carried forward their mindset with which they had managed to crush Australia 5-0 in Ashes 2018 and absolutely nailed that semi-final, and the rest, as they say, is history.
This was the first time in Australia’s last seven World Cup semi-finals that they were knocked out. The wound is still fresh and Ashes would be their chance for payback. Catch all the Ashes action on India’s no.1 Fantasy Sports app, BalleBaazi and WIN big, every match day.
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