One year ago, the world witnessed the greatest ODI match of all time. The final of the World Cup 2019 was between England and New Zealand had drama more than any blockbuster movie. The hosts won the final on boundary count and lifted their first-ever World Cup at the home of cricket at Lord’s.
It was agony for New Zealand and ecstasy for England in which was a dramatic world cup final. The England all-rounder Ben Stokes was at the centre of it all. Stokes kept fighting for his team in the final and batted out of his skin. The scores were tied after the completion of 100 overs and the historic final went into the super over.
Ben Stokes took a cigarette break ahead of Super Over
Ben Stokes was an automatic choice for England to bat again in the crucial super over. The 29-year-old took a ‘cigarette break’ to calm his nerves down ahead of the epic super over. On the first anniversary of that England’s historic win, excerpts from a book called ‘Morgan’s Men: The Inside Story of England’s Rise from Cricket World Cup Humiliation to Glory’ revealed that Ben Stokes decided to cool himself down with a cigarette break away from everyone else for a moment of peace.
“Finding a quiet spot as the frenzy of the Super Over approached was hard in a ground packed out with 27,000 supporters and television cameras following the players from the middle, through the Long Room and up the stairs to the dressing room”.
“But Ben Stokes had played at Lord’s many times. He knows every nook and cranny. As Eoin Morgan tries to bring calm to the England dressing room and sort out their tactics, Stokes nips off for a moment of peace”.
“He is covered in dirt and sweat. He has batted for two hours and 27 minutes of unbelievable tension. What does Stokes do? He goes to the back of the England dressing room, past the attendant’s little office and into the showers. There he lights up a cigarette and has few minutes on his own”, authors Nick Hoult and Steve James wrote and the excerpt has been published by stuff.co.nz.
Meanwhile, Ben Stokes delivered under pressure and was the main protagonist of the world Cup final. He was awarded the man of the match for his unbeaten knock of 84. The scores after the super overs were same and again but England won the final on the back of ICC boundary count rule.
