Thirteenth over: England forty-two-1 (Bairstow 20, Root three). The scoreboard operator awakes with a jerk as Bairstow tucks for a single, and Root follows in shape, making room with the aid of doing a little dance closer to mid-off. The keeper, Latham, could prevent that by using status as much as de Grandhomme.
Twelfth over England 39-1 (Bairstow 18, Root 2) England commonly cross dot-sprint. Right now, they’re going dot-dot-dot ad infinitum. That’s the 1/3 maiden in a row and the second from Henry, who has the Test-fit figures of 6-1-13-1. Root has faced 19 balls and controlled two singles. But he’s nonetheless there.
11th over: England 39-1 (Bairstow 18, Root 2) Williamson makes his first bowling alternate, changing Boult with the medium tempo of Colin de Grandhomme – who bowls a maiden, however, drops Bairstow. That went instantly into his midriff and appeared flawlessly catchable. Can Bairstow make NZ pay for it?
10th over: England 39-1 (Bairstow 18, Root 2). Now, even Root performs an air shot out of doors as Henry curls another one down the hill. That’s a maiden, so Henry has five-1-thirteen-1: no large-fit nerves for him. The win predictor gives England 84, which is in line with the cent; I give them about 44.
An email arrives headed “6th over voodoo chickens”, which could best appear to an OBOer. “In antique-school voodoo (Loudoun),” says John Starbuck, “the chickens don’t come domestic to roost; they get their heads chopped off instead. If you’re making supernatural bargains, you must get the details proper, or all of it is going demon-formed.”
Ninth over England 39-1 (Bairstow 18, Root 2), Bairstow isn’t completely himself yet; however, he does manage a shovel-pull for four off Boult.
“Dear Mr. D,” says Adam Roberts. “Can we’ve got the Henry who bowled against the Windies again, please?”
Eighth over England 34-1 (Bairstow 14, Root 1) Root is already being very well Rootish: a terrific go away, a pleasing lower back-foot push underneath the eyes, after which, while the scoreboard wishes a nudge, a short-footed dab into the covers to get off the mark. If he can get twice as many as Williamson did, that has to do the trick. But while Bairstow takes over, Henry beats him with a textbook outseam.
Here’s Geoff Wignall, emailing before the wicket. “I’d like to dissent,” he says, “from the notion that the primary ten overs might always be vital. Roy and Bairstow should determine the final results pretty quickly, but might this be an afternoon and a pitch for knocking the ball around and collecting a nice steady five or six an over? In this case, England has the gamers for process in Root and the center order – Stokes, Buttler, and Woakes. No worries.” Geoff, I want to become as cool as you.
7th over England 33-1 (Bairstow 14, Root zero), Boult maintains, and Bairstow beats that bespoke legside field for the primary playing an on-drivet’s closer to the umpire than he would usually move. Boult now has zero-21 from four overs when he could effortlessly have 2-10.
England badly needs Joe Root to get his typical stable start. Sixth over England 28-1 (Bairstow 10, Root zero), so Henry moves, keeping his nerve after Roy had pushed him for 4. Rob would like to see Stokes come in subsequently, and so would I; however, I doubt Morgan will demote himself in case it appears too angsty.
In different news, I’d been wondering where Brian Withington had been given to, and right here he is. “Not positive my nerves can face much extra of this,” he says. “I made a Faustian good deal earlier in the tournament for England to lose a traditional nailbiter to NZ in the final so long as we beat India and NZ and then Australia inside the semi-finals. I later prayed that Australia would win the group and render said good deal null and void; however, I worry voodoo chickens can also unavoidably be coming home to roost now.”
