England’s 2019 World Cup hero Ben Stokes took a cigarette break inorder to calm himself before the historic Super Over during last year’s final, according to an excerpt of a book titled ‘Morgan’s Men: The Inside Story of England’s Rise from Cricket World Cup Humiliation to Glory’.
The book reveals various aspects of England’s maiden title victory on home soil.
The Lord’s ground had hosted many legendary encounters in the past, but the nail-biting World Cup final between England and New Zealand in 2019 had the crowd in frenzy.
“Finding a quiet spot as the frenzy of the Super Over approached was hard in a ground packed out with 27,000 supporters and television cameras following the players from the middle, through the Long Room and up the stairs to the dressing room,” authors Nick Hoult and Steve James wrote and the excerpt has been published by stuff.co.nz.
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“But Ben Stokes had played at Lord’s many times. He knows every nook and cranny. As Eoin Morgan tries to bring calm to the England dressing room and sort out their tactics, Stokes nips off for a moment of peace,” they stated.
The charismatic Stokes took a little time for himself during a cigarette break which was followed by an amazing yet controversial victory for the England side.
“He is covered in dirt and sweat. He has batted for two hours and 27 minutes of unbelievable tension. What does Stokes do? He goes to the back of the England dressing room, past the attendant’s little office and into the showers. There he lights up a cigarette and has few minutes on his own,” the excerpt stated.
Stokes bagged the player of the match award for his astonishing unbeaten 84 and a further eight runs in the Super Over, which brought England their first World Cup title victory.