It is already being described as the most famous shot in the history of New Zealand cricket. When Grant Elliott, once a South African but now very much a Kiwi, swung his bat and planted the penultimate delivery of a thrilling game high over wide long on and into the crowd, it sent the Black Caps into the World Cup final for the first time after six semi-final failures.
South Africa had been beaten by four wickets as New Zealand chased down what had seemed a very challenging total of 298, under the Duckworth-Lewis method, in a match reduced by rain to 43 overs a side. But if it was joy for the New Zealand team, the 40,000 fans packed into Eden Park, and the nation of four million, it was only despair for AB de Villiers and his team, who had hoped to throw off the tag of having never reached the final of a global competition. To come so close was, said an emotional De Villiers, painful.
“It is a tough one being asked to describe my emotions,” he said, holding back the tears. “I felt we left it out on the field and I can’t ask any more. We had our chances, especially in the second half of the game, and we didn’t take them. Obviously it’s painful, so many people back home supporting us and we wanted to take the trophy home for them.
“I guess the sun will come again tomorrow. We had a lot of fun and I’m proud of the guys. We fought in every single game to the death. It is no consolation to have participated in one of the most memorable of games. It doesn’t make me feel better at all. It hurts quite a bit. I’m gutted.”
For the man of the match Elliott, however, was something that will take a while to sink in. “There has been lots of talk about us making the semis and not kicking on and I know it means a lot to the team, but you see from the emotions in the stands that it means a lot to a great many people and hopefully we can repay the faith in the final too.”
He described how he felt as the ball sailed into the stand: “I think that is the first moment to feel a release of emotion. Cricket is a game where you have to be unemotional in your approach. It was a great feeling to look at the team and the crowd, savour the moment and know we were through to the final.”
Is it the most famous shot? “Maybe. I’m quite a level person and I like to stay out of the media, to be honest. I guess it will sink in after the World Cup, maybe I’ll look back and reassess. I guess it is my best shot. I felt the pressure. I knew it was up to me. I knew four would do it because a tie was as good as a win. I think we left the chase a little bit late, to be honest, and it was stressful.
“This game is amazing, once you are in the zone you play with freedom. You just see the ball and hit it. It would have been better to have got it with an over to go but credit to South Africa, they are a world- class team with world-class performers and they played a very good game as well.”
