ICC World Cup 2019 | It just wasn’t meant to be, says Tom Latham
Tom Latham said that destiny wasn’t with the New Zealand side, despite his team playing a good brand of cricket, leaving everything on the pitch. New Zealand, who came into the final as ‘underdogs’, pushed England till the end, although all the luck went the way of the eventual winners.
England won the 2019 World Cup based on the number of boundaries scored, after the match ended in a tie in 50 overs and the super over. The hosts lifted their maiden World Cup title at Lord’s on Sunday. But there is no doubt that it was their opponent, the Kiwis, who captured the hearts of one and all. Latham, whose 56-ball 47, held their innings together in the backend, said that he was proud of his team despite the tragic ending.
“All we wanted to do was to play a brand of cricket that we do well and leave everything out there. I'm certainly proud of the whole group and the support staff in how we went about things today. Unfortunately, we didn't get across the line but we can certainly hold our heads up. It's been a great campaign. It just wasn't meant to be,” Latham was quoted saying by Cricbuzz.
The wicketkeeper-batsman instead looked at the team’s comeback in the final after posting a par score of 241 against the mighty English batting lineup.
“It was a tricky surface to get yourself in on. Most guys who came in soaked up a few dots and that was the beauty of putting runs on the board. Try and use that scoreboard pressure to build and we managed to get that run rate up. We know that if you get a couple of wickets and a couple of new batsmen, it certainly rises even quicker. We were reasonably happy with what we put on the board. We were so close,” Latham said.
In the end, it wasn’t enough. England tied the game, with the help of a controversial overthrow. They went on to win the title after a tied super over which saw the result decided on which team scored more boundaries. Latham admitted that such scenarios were part and parcel of the game.
“[About Stokes extra runs] There were so many moments throughout the game. I don't think you can just look at that one moment where it went for four. It was so close. It could have easily just missed and been one run. I guess that's just the game we play. It was a bizarre moment [the super over]. It was about trying to refocus around the job we needed to do. Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be today,” Latham added.