World Cup: England are looking seriously good after beating New Zealand and entering semis, and the records are tumbling too

England sealed their semi-finals berth in the ongoing World Cup after they defeated New Zealand by 119 runs at the Riverside Ground on Wednesday. The New Zealand side which remained unbeaten for most of the tournament has started to look shaky in the business end of the tournament. convincing 

Both England and New Zealand stepped in the field to anchor a win to secure a spot in the semi-finals. England was coming back after having gained momentum, defeating India. On the other hand, New Zealand was hoping to seal the deal with a victory after two consecutive losses against Pakistan and Australia.

English skipper Eoin Morgan won the toss and asked Kiwis to bowl first. England put up a total of 305-8 after their 50 overs. Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow built a 124 run stand before Roy (60 off 61) was dismissed by James Neesham. Bairstow went on to hit another explosive century and the Morgan chipped in 42 off 40. New Zealand lost their openers, Martin Guptil, and Henry Nicholls by the 6th over and found themselves at 14-2. Skipper Kane Willamson and Ross Taylor did look like they were building a partnership but Willamson couldn’t save himself from a run out even after athletic dive. No batsman could hold the crease and capitalise on starts. Tom Latham was the highest scoring Kiwi with a cautious knock of 57 off 65. New Zealand was all out for 186 in the 45th over and England won the contest by 119 runs. Bairstow was awarded the Man of the Match 

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Here are some interesting facts:

Bairstow became the first Englishman to score two back to back World Cup hundreds.

Jofra Archer now has 17 wickets in the ongoing World Cup. No other English player has taken more wickets than him in a single World Cup.

This was England’s first victory against New Zealand in a World Cup match since 1983. England also reached the semi-finals of a World Cup after 1992

After the loss, New Zealand slipped a spot on the ICC Team Rankings

New Zealand’s qualification to the semis now depends on the result of the match between Pakistan and Bangladesh. If Pakistan loses the match, New Zealand will qualify but Pakistan manage to defeat Bangladesh by a big margin on July 5, they might topple the Kiwis to reach in the semi-finals.

READ | World Cup 2019: Pakistan Needs To Accomplish This Magical Feat Against Bangladesh To Qualify For The Semifinals