20-20 World Cup: Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham help New Zealand book final berth, beat England by 5 wickets

England broke several Kiwi hearts when they defeated New Zealand in the final of the 50-over World Cup in 2019 but now, it’s time for the Black Caps to cheer as they defeated England by 5 wickets to march into the finals of the 20-20 World Cup.

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The coin fell in Williamson’s favour and he had no hesitations in putting England in to bat. Jonny Bairstow was promoted to open the innings in the absence of Roy but he struggled to get going. Jos Buttler, on the other hand, hit a few crisp shots. However, the run rate was not galloping and given the dew, England needed big runs on the board.

In an attempt to up the ante, Bairstow and Buttler departed in quick succession leaving England in trouble at 53-2 in the ninth over. However, a blazing 41 off 30 by Dawid Malan, and stunning 51 off 37 by Moeen Ali helped England post a competitive 166. The score was not big but defendable.

The start for New Zealand was the worst Kiwis would have expected as they lost Martin Guptill in the first over for 4. Soon after Kane Williamson departed, leaving England reeling at 13-2. Daryl Mitchell and Devon Conway then stabilised the inning with an 82 run stand in 66 balls before Conway departed, giving England a sniff. Glenn Phillips also had a disappointing outing.

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However, England didn’t enjoy much success after that as Daryl Mitchell and James Neesham smacked England bowlers to all parts of the ground. Neesham departed for an 11 ball 27 but did the job for his team. The formalities were completed by Mitchell, who remained unbeaten on 72 off 47 balls.