Allah was with us, says Eoin Morgan after leading England to maiden World Cup win

Hosts England and 2015 finalists New Zealand featured in the most thrilling World Cup final in the tournament’s 44-year history at the iconic Lord’s on Sunday. The match ended in a tie after 100 overs as both teams scored 241 runs and even the Super Over succeeding it concluded as a tie with both sides making 15 runs. However, it was Eoin Morgan who lifted the trophy as his team had hit more number of boundaries.

Not many were convinced with such a conclusion in the tournament but yet the rules were rules. Even before the match ended the way it did, there was a moment of utter confusion and tension and it had gone to England’s favour as well. It was the fourth ball of the 50th over which was being bowled by Trent Boult. England needed 15 runs off the final over and with only six runs taken off the first three, the Three Lions were left to score nine off the last three.

Ben Stokes was on strike while Adil Rashid was at the other end. Stokes hit the ball on the on-side and ran for two. Martin Guptill was the fielder and as he threw the ball in, it hit Stokes who gave a dive to complete the second run. The deflected ball went for four overthrow runs and the umpire awarded England six runs for that. They needed to score just three off the last two from therefrom.

We are a diverse side

The decision was debated as experts felt England should have been given five runs and not six since the two batsmen had not started for their second run when the ball was released by the fielder. In complete chaos, New Zealand felt things were “uncontrollable” while England were not complaining.

The home team skipper, Eoin Morgan, was asked at the post-match conference whether the “luck of an Irishman” got England over the line. The captain smiled and said: “We had Allah with us as well”.

“I spoke to Adil (Rashid). He said Allah is definitely with us. It’s the rub of the green. It’s also reflective of our team; we’re a diverse side and we brought that together today,” Morgan, who is the first captain to lead England in two World Cups, said.

Here is the video from Morgan’s press conference:

The England side that competed in the 2019 World Cup is a multicultural one. While Morgan himself is an Irish by birth, Stokes was born in New Zealand. Jofra Archer is a West Indian by birth while Tom Curran was born in South Africa.