INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
England beat New Zealand in super over to win T20 series 3-2By Justin GouldingEngland celebrate a 3-2 series winEngland have won five of
the past six Twenty20 series against New ZealandFifth Twenty20, Eden Park, AucklandNew Zealand 146-5: Guptill 50 (20), Munro 46 (21)England
146-7: Bairstow 47 (18), Santner 2-20England 17, New Zealand 8 in super overEngland won by nine runs in super over; England won series
3-2ScorecardEngland beat New Zealand in another super over to win a thrilling final Twenty20 and take the series 3-2.
In a repeat of July's
World Cup final, the scores were tied at the end of a wildly unpredictable game in Auckland.New Zealand plundered 146-5 from 11 overs, and
it took Chris Jordan hitting 12 off the final three deliveries to take the game to a super over.Jonny Bairstow, who earlier struck 47 off 18
balls, and captain Eoin Morgan scored 17 off England's six deliveries, before Jordan limited New Zealand to eight.It was a remarkable
finish to a rain-delayed game that contained a staggering 29 sixes in 24 overs.While England, who won the World Cup final by virtue of
scoring more boundaries, held their nerve in admittedly less pressurised circumstances, New Zealand will take little comfort from once again
missing out by the thinnest of margins.If the two-Test series which starts on 21 November comes close to matching the excitement on offer at
Eden Park, supporters from both sides can have no complaints.There were several moments around which this game hinged: Bairstow's three
sixes in a row off Ish Sodhi; Jordan's four off the final delivery to tie the scores; and Morgan's stunning catch over his shoulder as
he ran back from cover to remove Tim Seifert from the fourth ball of the super over.
But Jordan's nerveless display with the ball
deserves particular praise, given the batting pyrotechnics which had gone before.
On a pitch that offered the bowlers no assistance, and on
a ground with boundaries so short that mis-hits frequently cleared the rope, his yorkers restricted Seifert and Martin Guptill to a two, a
four and two singles.
England's celebrations may not have matched those at Lord's on 14 July, but they can be rightly proud of the
manner in which they pulled off an away series win with a squad featuring six T20 debutants.
Victory in the Tests would cap an impressive
first series for new England coach Chris Silverwood.
England in New Zealand - fixtures - resultsJonny BairstowJonny Bairstow hit five sixes
and two fours in his 47, then scored eight off three balls in the super overBairstow bullies New Zealand after Guptill goes largeThat
Guptill's 19-ball fifty, Colin Munro's equally savage 46 off 21 deliveries and Seifert's 39 off 16 will go down as footnotes in this
memorable match says much for the excitement that followedMan of the match Bairstow was almost solely responsible for leading England's
pursuit, which veered between probable and unlikely amid a barrage of brutal hitting and clumps of wickets.Requiring more than 13 runs an
over from the beginning, England lost Tom Banton, James Vince and Morgan in slipping to 39-3.But Bairstow, pummelling the short, straight
boundaries, added 61 in four overs with the resourceful Sam Curran before he became the first of three wickets to fall in four balls.Sam
Billings and Tom Curran kept England afloat - just - but three runs and the departure of Curran off the first three balls of Jimmy Neesham's
last over left new man Jordan needing 12 off three.No bother
He swatted a full toss over long-off for six, scampered a two, then swung to fine leg for four to tie the scores
Given what took place four months ago, perhaps it was no surprise.
'Epic', 'manic', 'absolutely remarkable' - what they saidEngland captain
Eoin Morgan on BBC Test Match Special: "It's absolutely remarkable
We didn't expect to play much cricket today and it's turned out to be an epic end to a series where there wasn't much between the two
sides."To win it in such fashion with a young, inexperienced side in the long term will pay huge dividends for us.England batsman Jonny
The way they came out and put on that total was very, very impressive
It was a pretty imposing total but we thought we had a chance."We don't want to keep making a habit of super overs
It just shows how close the sides are
It sets up a fantastic Test series."
England bowler Chris Jordan: "A few of us have played T10 cricket so the mood was very calm the entire
I just tried to keep a clear mind."I'd bowled a super over before in Sharjah against Pakistan, so it was more or less going through
processes and letting what will be will be."BBC cricket correspondent Jonathan Agnew: "It was fitting that the last match of this series
should end in a super over."It's been as difficult to separate these two teams now as it was in the World Cup final - but this time,
England's victory was emphatic."New Zealand captain Tim Southee: "The shorter the game, the harder the side can go
It would have been nice to have one more run there somewhere but it wasn't to be."It's been a good series throughout - it has ebbed and
It will be good to get the whites back on."England - New Zealand go to super over - again3 hours agoFrom the sectionCricketMartin Guptill
hit 50 off 20 balls in New Zealand's innings, but faced only one ball of the super overEngland, New Zealand and a super over
Sound familiar?Almost four months after the World Cup ended with a dramatic super over, the deciding Twenty20 in Auckland went the same
way.England, chasing 147 in a rain-affected 11-over game, needed 16 runs from the final over to wrap up the five-match series.And people
couldn't help but think back to what happened at Lord's in July
