Santner’s luck runs out at wrong time

Win some, lose some. England captain Eoin Morgan was adamant Jason Roy successfully took a clean, grass-level catch to remove New Zealand’s Mitchell Santner for two during a tense third oneday cricket international, before a lucky break delivered payback.

After endless replays Santner was given not out by third umpire Rod Tucker, a match-turning moment which opened the door for the Black Caps at 112-6 in their chase for 235 in Wellington on Saturday night.

It slammed shut on them again, after Santner and Kane Williamson added 96 for the seventh wicket to get them within sight. Williamson’s firm drive deflected off England bowler Chris Woakes’ fingertips onto the stumps, and Santner’s bat was in the air as he scrambled back, gone for 41 off 54 balls.

‘‘You earn a little bit of luck along the way. Woaksey was trying to catch the ball and it’s a really unlucky way to get out. Obviously, a significant moment in the game,’’ said Morgan.

Morgan had mixed feelings about the earlier catch, when Santner clipped one from man of the match Moeen Ali to mid-wicket and Roy scooped his fingers under it.

It revived memories of England’s Twenty20 defeat to Australia in Hobart last month when Roy was denied a similar catch by television replays.

This one looked OK from the first angle behind Roy, but the front-on camera made it impossible for Tucker to conclusively rule the ball hadn’t touched the grass. The two-dimensional picture gives a false impression, too, when a fielder’s fingers can press down the grass and still snare a legitimate catch.

‘‘I think it was the exact same [as Hobart]. I had a worse view of this one, but on the TV it’s not going to look out, from front on. He said he has his fingers under it and I believe him.’’

Roy’s initial reaction was interesting. He looked uncertain, even if fielders usually know whether they’ve taken one cleanly. That was by design, Morgan said.

‘‘After the decision in Hobart we were told ‘if you can, don’t celebrate or throw the ball away, throw the ball in until it’s called dead’. We celebrated in Hobart, and they ran one.

‘‘We were told if he threw the ball up and it went over the rope it would be five overthrows if it was given not out.

‘‘That went around the team and everyone knows it now, regardless of whether it’s a tight catch, which is hard to do.’’