SUPER MEN
Morgan hails his boundary-hitting heroes for cheering up the nation after the most thrilling, insane match of all time
EOIN MORGAN celebrates after the champagne Super Over that clinched England’s World Cup glory.
In the most dramatic finish of all time, England ended 44 years of hurt on a countback of the most boundaries scored, 26-17, following a tie with New Zealand.
The teams made 241 in their 50 overs – Ben Stokes (left, emotional at the end) top scoring for England at Lord’s with an
unbeaten 84 – and still could not be separated by the extra Super Over, where Martin Guptill needed two runs to win off the final ball but failed to beat Jason Roy’s throw.
With millions tuning in on Channel 4 – after a 14-year absence in Britain of live international cricket on terrestrial TV – skipper Morgan seized on the significance of the heartstopping drama.
He said: “To me and the team, and everyone involved in the last four years, this means absolutely everything.
“I certainly hope participation levels will go up and the nature of the game was outstanding.
“And I hope it helps because on a Sunday evening people are usually settling in to watch a bit of David Attenborough or a good film. I hope they were tuning into the cricket.
“People believed because we believed, and I’m thankful for that. But sport is sometimes about the finest of margins and the finest of margins went our way.”
Stokes was in tears after his heroics. Struggling to beat Guptill’s throw from deep midwicket, he inadvertently deflected it for four overthrows as he dived to make his ground.
With 15 needed off the final over, Stokes hauled England level and Morgan hailed his contribution.
He said: “To come through everything he’s been through is extraordinary, almost superhuman.
“He carried our batting line-up today.”