The hero of the just concluded World Cup Cricket’s final, Ben Stokes said he learnt his lesson from Bangladesh that helped him navigate his side home and bring the first ever World Cup for England, the birthplace of Cricket.
In the most pulsating final match in the history of one-day internationals, Ben Stokes needed to score two runs in the final ball against New Zealand but he played the ball cautiously and got just one as the runner in the other side was run out . But, that kept at least ensured a tie before a thrilling Super Over that also ended in a tie. However, England were the triumph according to the rule that stated the team which score more boundary in a match after the stalemate in Super Over is the winner.
When asked about the win, the New Zealand-born Stokes said to cricinfo, “I think the only time I really thought about it was the second to last ball. All I could think about was Bangladesh in the World T20 when they needed the same and they just hit it in the air.”
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The 28-year old all-rounder, who scored unbeaten 84 in the low-scoring final, was mentioning about the debacle that Bangladesh faced during their match against India in the World Twenty20 back in 2016.
Tigers needed two runs in last three balls but both their experienced batsmen Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah were caught at deep in the consecutive balls while trying to play aerial shots and last man Mustafizur Rahman was running out trying for a single to see Bangladesh losing agonizingly by one run.
“All I was thinking was- don't get caught. Try and get one and get it to a Super Over at least. Then if I hit it into a gap, maybe we could get two. That was my process: just don't hit it in the air and get caught,” said Stokes, recalling his mindset during the crunch situation at Lord’s.
“I was thinking, don't try and be a hero and do it with a six. I wish it had gone for two and hadn't come to that because my emotions were high. I wasn't best pleased with myself walking back to the changing rooms for that ten-minute turnaround,” concluded the man of the final.
