Wood finds fortune with fingertips

ENGLAND’S first-wicket savagery set the tone for another crushing World Cup win but Mark Wood’s fingers pointed the way to their first semi-final in 27 years. Eoin Morgan’s team will play at fortress Edgbaston a week today — probably a re-match of the victory there over India four days ago — after Jonny Bairstow’s second hundred in a row, and a tenth openingcentury stand alongside Jason Roy set up the 119-run win over New Zealand. A 306-run target was tough for the Kiwis but the game was up when Wood’s fingertips deflected a drive from Ross Taylor to run out their best batsman Kane Williamson at the nonstriker’s end. Wood, who took three for 34 on his home ground, said: ‘I got lucky. It’s not as if I deliberately palmed it back on the stumps. I was trying to stop it and got a little bit fortunate. But in big games, in big moments, you need them. ‘He doesn’t know how unlucky he is because I’ve got the smallest hands for a bloke you’ve ever seen! The umpire wasn’t sure if I’d tipped it and I was like: “I swear to God, I did”.’ Defeat to Pakistan in the Champions Trophy two years ago raised doubts of England’s big-match temperament. But with Sir Ian Botham — one of the team that reached the 1992 World Cup final — looking on from the chairman’s box at the Riverside, they were clinical, refusing to panic once the deceleration of being reduced from 194-1 to 214-4 kicked in. Jos Buttler was delighted England had secured their progress to the last four. ‘From the start, I think it was the minimum requirement,’ he said. ‘We have given ourselves a great chance and are excited for the challenge of playing in the semi-final of a home World Cup.’