BEN FALLS SHORT IN MIRACLE BID
Stokes shows he’s still got the magic touch but Kiwi Santner has last laugh
BEN STOKES clearly does not have the same scriptwriter as Sir Ian Botham but the Durham man so nearly dragged England to victory on his return to international cricket in a first one- day international they had no right to win.
England were heading towards a crushing defeat to follow their miserable display in the Twenty20 tri-series when Ross Taylor and Tom Latham were adding 178 for New Zealand in reply to a slightly under-par 284 for eight.
It was then that Eoin Morgan threw the ball, almost in desperation, to the man he insisted would only bowl four overs on his England comeback five months to the day since the Bristol fracas that turned his world upside down.
Stokes had looked rusty with the bat in making 12 off 22 balls and no more than steady with the ball in bowling that initial four- over spell for 15 runs while taking a straightforward catch in the covers to see the back of Martin Guptill.
But that Botham scriptwriter, who allowed his man to take a wicket with his first ball back after a controversial exile from the England team more than 30 years ago, looked as though he might be about to grab his pen again.
Stokes had bowled poorly on his return to the attack and conceded 11 runs in his fifth over, chuntering to himself to prove he has lost nothing of the competitive edge that has made him one of the world’s best all-rounders.
That was all about to change as he gained the crucial wicket of his former county team-mate Latham in his sixth over to spark a spell that saw England take three wickets in three overs. Two of them went to Stokes — Colin de Grandhomme falling under his spell, too — but just as it seemed he would provide the happy ending all England supporters demanded, New Zealand were to provide a final twist.
Taylor, making his 18th one-day international century, had given his wicket away charging at Adil Rashid but New Zealand found an unlikely hero in left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner.
Santner smashed two sixes off Rashid in a 48th over that cost 16 runs and finished the job when he hit Chris Woakes for the winning six with four balls to spare, when nine were required off the final over. Game to New Zealand but a highly satisfactory match for Stokes.
‘Ben is delighted to be back, he’s told everyone that,’ said Morgan. ‘It’s an awesome feeling, when you’ve been away and you’re back in a fun environment, with lots of friends. I can vouch for that as I spend a lot of time away while the Tests are on. Coming back makes you smile.
‘He travelled really well. After the first spell, he said he could have bowled longer but we didn’t really need him at that stage. We needed something later and he’s the kind of player who can make it happen. He will be stiff tomorrow but we are really pleased with him.’
England are favourites for next year’s 50-over World Cup, so will look back on this opening to an important five-match series knowing they could have done much better.
Joe Root made a half-century without turning it into three figures, as is the Test captain’s wont, but Jos Buttler looked as though he would take England to the 300 plus score they needed.
And even though Buttler made 79 off 65 balls before Tim Southee ran him out, England’s most gifted white-ball batsman will be disappointed that only 67 runs came off England’s last 10 overs.
Then England hardly distinguished themselves in the field, Buttler dropping Latham on 47 off Rashid and Jonny Bairstow spilling the same man on 77 off Tom Curran. Buttler will also be disappointed he failed to stump Southee off Rashid in the climax that swung the match New Zealand’s way. They have now won nine successive ODIs.
‘We tried to bowl our seamers before the sun set, the pitch got damp and the dew came across,’ said Morgan, who felt there was a big disadvantage in bowling second under lights. ‘We did that reasonably well but they played exceptionally. There wasn’t much in it. It’s frustrating but there are big positives.’
Not least the return of England’s best player.
LIAM LIvINGSTONE is a doubt for England’s two Tests in New Zealand after suffering an ankle injury. The 24-year- old misses the Lions match against West Indies A in Antigua today.