In a thrilling game od cricket New Zealand beat England by 5 wickets.
Maiden appearance for New Zealand in T20 WC final
End of sequence of five consecutive semifinal wins for England in World Cups (ODIs + T20Is)
Last defeat came against India in Manchester in WC 1983.
Highest targets successfully chased down in T20Is in Abu Dhabi
167 NZ vs Eng 2021
165 Nam vs Net 2021
163 HK vs Afg 2015
158 Aus vs WI 2021
154 Ire vs HK 2019
150 HK vs Oman 2015
Wow. We’ve watched something special. Everything about this game told you there was going to be something special on offer today. But it was hard to believe it for the most part. But then it all changed. Thing is, it’s hard to even pinpoint what that particular moment was. New Zealand were reeling from Chris Woakes’s new ball spell, having lost two of their most experienced players.
Williamson: Most players have played together in various tournaments. Knew it was going to be a great game of cricket. Thought they had a pretty competitive total. But just by staying in there, building the partnerships and cashing in on some moments, some matchups. Definitely something that stood out today (Mitchell’s character). Has batted beautifully in a high pressure situation. T20 cricket – it’s a game of small margins. Depending on the surface, the short side – these things can be match-defining. He came out and hit the ball hard, that’s what he does (neesham). Changed the momentum really. Fantastic knock from Daryll, hit the big shots when it counted. We’ll be following that match – going to be fantastic. We know we have another challenge coming up and we’ll change our focus after tonight.
Morgan: Coming into the game we knew both sides were close in skill. Full credit to Kane and his team. They outplayed us today. Have represented ourselves in this tournament really well. Proud of the guys. They have given everything in this tournament. Thought we were right in the game until probably the 17th, 18th overs. We had them exactly where we wanted them up until that point. It was (sluggish). We’re a six-hitting side but we struggled to hit sixes. But we hung in there and posted probably a par score. To come out and hit sixes from ball one like that – full credit to him (Neesham). Absolutely love playing cricket at the moment. At the forefront of change both on and off the field (the team).
Daryl Mitchell | Player of the Match | 72*(47): It was a bit of a whirl at the end there. I couldn’t remember what was going on, but I’m happy I got the job done. It was a challenging surface, with the new ball, and it was two-paced. The way Conway set the platform and Neesh hit a few out of the ground was amazing. We knew one or two good overs would do it, and we got the momentum back thanks to Neesham’s hitting. With what’s going on around the world right now, it’s amazing that my old man travelled half way around the world to watch me play, so this is a proud moment.
Opener Daryl Mitchell smashed an unbeaten 72 to lead New Zealand into their first ever Twenty20 World Cup final with a thrilling five-wicket victory over England on Wednesday.
Chasing 166 for victory, New Zealand were in trouble at 13-2 and 107-4 when Jimmy Neesham turned the semi-final on its head with an 11-ball 27 to help achieve the target with one over to spare in Abu Dhabi.
With 20 needed off the final 12 balls, Mitchell smashed Chris Woakes for two sixes and a four before his 47-ball blitz triggered wild celebrations in the New Zealand dug out.
New Zealand will face either Australia or Pakistan in Sunday’s final.
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