New Zealand vs England in cricket: Greatest sporting rivalry of 2019?

Drama continued this past Sunday as New Zealand and England faced each other for the series-deciding final T20I in Auckland. Due to continuous rains, play finally commenced after being reduced to an 11-overs-a-side affair. Batting first, the Black Caps were turbo-charged by Martin Guptill’s 50 off just 20 balls to reach 146-5 in their 11 overs. In reply, Bairstow’s 47 from 18 balls and quick-fire cameos by Sam Curran and captain Morgan brought down the equation to 16 runs from the last over. Chris Jordan’s 6, 2, 4 off the final three balls ensured that cricket fans worldwide were in for a repeat of 2019 World Cup final.

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New Zealand vs England in 2019

England eventually topped the hosts in the super-over to pocket the five-match series 3-2. The match reminded everyone of the controversial World Cup final this July which saw the English side lift the coveted trophy for the first time in history. Indo-Pak and Ashes rivalry aside, fans all over the world have witnessed a rise of new sporting rivalry between these two great cricketing nations. The two teams have always produced exciting limited-overs contests against each other. Their World Cup final meeting provided one of the matches of a lifetime and the recently concluded T20I series is only reminiscent that England-New Zealand in cricket has been one of the greatest sporting rivalries of the year so far.

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England’s tour of New Zealand will now continue with the upcoming two Test matches. The first Test of the series will be played at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui between November 21 and 25. While the second Test will be played at the Seddon Park in Hamilton from November 29 onwards. Unlike other Test matches these days, the upcoming series will not form a part of the ongoing inaugural ICC World Test Championship.

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