ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 final: England vs New Zealand - A saga of pain at the last stage

England and New Zealand will be squaring off in the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 at Lord’s on Sunday. It is the clash between two perennial underachievers on the world stage. England and New Zealand have won only on ICC title, with New Zealand winning the ICC Champions Trophy in 2000 in Kenya while England won the World T20 in 2010. However, both teams are also united in one another factor apart from the ‘perennial underachievers’ tag. Both sides have had to endure the trauma of losing World Cup finals. England, who are hosting the tournament for the fifth time, has reached the final after 27 years but have endured the pain of losing in three finals. New Zealand, on the other hand, entered the final for the first time in 2015 but suffered a big loss to Australia in Melbourne.

Ahead of the final in Lord’s, here is a look back at all the finals that England and New Zealand have lost.

1)      1979 World Cup final – England blown away by The King

England had squandered a golden chance in 1975 to reach the final when they lost to Australia in a low-scoring thriller. In 1979, England sailed into the final where they would square off against West Indies, the 1975 champions. England elected to field and reduced West Indies to 99/4. However, Sir Viv Richards and Collis King produced an exceptional exhibition of hitting and revived West Indies. Richards blasted 138 while King smashed 86. Their 139-run stand helped West Indies reach 286/9 in 60 overs. In response, Sir Geoffrey Boycott and Mike Brearley started off slowly but Joel Garner’s 5/38 gave West Indies a 92-run win and their second title.

2)      1987 World Cup final -  A reverse sweep kills the final

The World Cup shifted to the sub-continent for the first time and England dominated the tournament along with Australia. In the clash of the two old rivals at Eden Gardens, Australia chose to bat and David Boon smashed 75. Mike Veletta’s cameo of 45 off 31 balls and a solid knock from Allan Border helped Australia reach 253/5. In response, England were given a solid platform thanks to Bill Athey’s 58 and gritty knocks from Allan Lamb and Mike Gatting. At 135/2, Gatting played a reverse sweep off Border and was caught as England lost momentum. Australia won by seven runs and won the first of five titles.

3)      1992 World Cup final – Those two magic balls finish England

England once again put up a solid show in the 1992 World Cup final held for the first time in Australia and New Zealand. Played with coloured clothing, England put up a solid display and were ready to face Pakistan in the final. Pakistan chose to bat and they started badly. Imran Khan blasted 72 and Javed Miandad slammed 58. The innings was given good impetus by Inzamam-ul-Haq’s 42 and an 18-ball 31 from Wasim Akram. England reached 141/4 but Akram changed the entire course of the match. With a leg-cutter, he got rid of Allan Lamb and then bowled Chris Lewis with an inswinger off successive deliveries. Those two balls totally changed the game and despite Neil Fairbrother’s 62, England was all out for 227 and Pakistan won the World Cup for the first time with a 22-run win.

4)      2015 World Cup – New Zealand overwhelmed at the G

After six World Cup semi-final defeats, New Zealand broke their jinx by beating South Africa in Auckland and they were squaring off against their Trans-Tasman rivals Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. New Zealand chose to bat and all hopes were on Brendon McCullum to give them an attacking start. However, Mitchell Starc dismissed McCullum for a three-ball duck with a yorker and the New Zealand innings unfolded. Grant Elliott, the star of the semi-final with 84, smashed 83 but a disastrous collapse of 7/33 saw New Zealand bowled out for 183. In response, Aaron Finch fell for 0 but Steve Smith’s 56 and a 74 from Michael Clarke, playing in his final ODI match helped Australia win the title for the fifth time.

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HIGHLIGHTS

• England has reached the World Cup final after 27 years.
• England beat New Zealand in the league stage in Durham.
• India and Australia are the only hosts to have won the World Cup.