London: Jofra Archer didn’t appear nervous before bowling the Super Over that won England the World Cup – and that was because Ben Stokes’ words of advice were keeping him calm.
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Stokes, who suffered his own final-over nightmare with the ball three years ago in the ICC Twenty20 final in Kolkata, sought out Archer to reassure him before the final shootout against the Black Caps.
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Test skipper Joe Root did the same, reminding Archer that an World Cup is not a matter of life and death.
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After Jimmy Neesham belted a six off his third ball – Archer could have let the panic set in. But he kept his cool on the biggest stage of all to set up a famous win, just two months into his international career.
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“I actually went to Morgs first, I had an idea I was going to do it (bowl the Super Over) but I wanted to double check that he wanted me to do it,” said Archer as per an ICC release.
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“I think it was going fine until the six, and then (Ben) Stokes told me even before the over: ‘Win or lose, today does not define you. Everyone believes in you.’
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“He came to talk to me because of that (Kolkata). He probably went through the same emotions, the same feelings but being on the losing side.
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“If we had lost today, I don’t know what I would have done tomorrow.
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“To back up what he said, if we did lose there is a T20 coming up next year and I would have another chance.
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“Rooty came up to me and said some inspirational words as well. I knew that if we did lose, it wasn’t the end of the world.
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“I am glad that the guys look up to me and they trust me to do it.
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“The skipper (Eoin Morgan) really believed in me, even after the six. A lot of captains could have had their head in their hands, but he was really calm and really understanding.”
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And after Stokes’ heroics with the bat took England’s men’s team to a first-ever World crown in 44 years of trying — Archer admitted it felt a bit like fate played a role at the home of cricket.
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“It was serous passion, this is a great team, I cannot imagine a better bunch of guys to share it with. I can’t put it into words, I can’t believe we actually won the game,” he said.
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“Looking back, a lot of things went our way. The last five overs of the run chase in particular. I guess it was just meant to be,” he added.