XtraTime Web Desk: The World will get a new World Champion tomorrow as hosts England will face mighty New Zealand in the final of World Cup at Lord’s. England’s global ambitions have never been fully realised since Sir Alf Ramsey’s team won the 1966 FIFA World Cup. Whether it is Gary Linekar or Hary Kane, the ‘Cup’ that they desperately want never came home during the last five and half decades. Even the ‘Three Lionesses’ – England’s women football team under their mercurial manager Phil Neville — had insane following during their World Cup campaign that ended in a heartbreaking semi-final defeat.
This was at a time when Eoin Morgan’s men were going through a roller coaster ride but were hardly followed. Parched for success, in this backdrop arrives a cricket team, which on other days can’t be followed because the sport in UK is no longer free to air. But on Sunday, as all roads would lead towards Saint John’s Woods, for a day, football will take a back seat.
Never ever had an England limited overs team fired the imagination of cricket loving public in general with their aggressive brand of cricket like the current one, the turnaround that started after their exit at the group league stage of the 2015 World Cup. New Zealand, on the other hand, have banked on a committed bunch of individuals with a quiet yet assertive leader in stylish Kane Williamson, who would like to go one better than his predecessor Brendon McCullum during the last edition.
Roy (426 runs) and Bairstow (496 runs) have been intimidating in this tournament and Trent Boult and Matt Henry would love to repeat their semi-final show in the final too. Joe Root (549) has exactly been what England needed in the tournament, a stable man holding the middle-order yet playing his strokes. Ben Stokes has teed off whenever he got a chance and perhaps Buttler is the only who is due for a big knock.
Whatever the condition of the pitch is, England wouldn’t mind bowling first as Joffra Archer (19 wickets), Chris Woakes (13 wickets) and Liam Plunkett (8 wickets) have been phenomenal. Even Mark Wood (17 wickets), despite some inconsistencies, has been good and Adil Rashid (11 wickets) has fired in the semi-final when it mattered. New Zealand, despite their final loss to Australia at an imposing MCG, wouldn’t carry much of a baggage even though they have six players with the experience of playing a big final unlike England which has none.
Williamson (548 runs), possibly the most loved and respected cricketer (even if his twitter following is remarkably less than any average India player), will like to play one good knock and expect a bit more support from Martin Guptill (167 runs) and Ross taylor (335 runs). Then a bit more support from a disciplined Mitchell Santner or the real ‘three-dimensional’ players like Jimmy Neesham and Colin de Grandhomme, the Black Caps could suddenly look more menacing than what they seem on paper.
In the end however, even if England win, cricket will never ever topple football. Ditto for New Zealand where ‘All Blacks’ – the world beaters in rugby has captured the imagination for years now, and a cricket World Cup is unlikely to change that. But it will still be a refreshing change as 50-over format will enjoy a breath of fresh air.