Marais Erasmus’ recent remarks suggest that despite England officially winning the ICC ODI World Cup 2019 final against New Zealand, there’s a compelling argument that New Zealand should be considered the true winner of the match.
The 2019 Cricket World Cup final between England and New Zealand etched itself into the annals of cricketing history. It marked the first time a World Cup final went into a Super Over after the match ended in a tie following the regulation 50 overs per side. Yet, the intensity soared as the trophy hung in the balance, to be decided by a single over tie-breaker. Amidst the gripping showdown, some questionable umpiring decisions tilted the game in England’s favor, adding a layer of controversy to their long-awaited triumph in the 50-over format.
The match’s climax unfolded in riveting fashion as England and New Zealand engaged in a super-over to determine the ultimate victor. Astonishingly, even the super over ended in a deadlock. However, England clinched the title by having hit more boundaries than their opponents throughout the match. This decision sparked mixed reactions within the cricketing community, with some questioning the validity of England’s victory.
Among the memorable and contentious moments of the match was Martin Guptill’s pivotal throw. During a crucial juncture, as Ben Stokes and Adil Rashid hustled between the wickets, Guptill’s throw inadvertently struck Stokes’ bat, deflecting the ball to the boundary. This fortuitous turn awarded England four crucial runs, ultimately contributing to their total of 6 runs in that crucial sequence.
However, subsequent scrutiny revealed an error in the umpiring decision. Marais Erasmus, the on-field umpire, acknowledged that the umpires should have awarded England 5 runs instead of 6 for the incident. In a candid conversation with The Telegraph, Erasmus disclosed a post-match discussion with his fellow umpire Kumar Dharmasena, shedding light on the oversight that influenced the outcome of the match.
“The next morning I opened my hotel room door on my way to breakfast and Kumar opened his door at the same time and he said, ‘did you see we made a massive error?’”
“That’s when I got to know about it. But in the moment on the field, we just said six, you know, communicated to each other, ‘six, six, it’s six’ not realizing that they haven’t crossed, it wasn’t picked up. That’s it.,” he said.
Due to the timing of Martin Guptill’s throw, Ben Stokes and Adil Rashid hadn’t completed the second run. According to the rules, they should have only been awarded one run, resulting in a total of five runs for England. However, the umpires’ error allowed England to tie the match and proceed to a super over.
After the incident, Ben Stokes expressed his regret to Kane Williamson and the New Zealand team. Nevertheless, the mistake ultimately favored the home team, as Stokes played a crucial role in guiding England to victory with his match-winning innings.
“It was just too high but they had burnt their review. That was my only error in the whole seven weeks and afterward, I was so disappointed because it would have been an absolute flip had I got through the whole World Cup not making an error, and that impacted the game a bit because he was one of their top players.,” the former umpire concluded.
