Of course, it was Ben Stokes who hit the winning runs. The ultimate big match player, on the course of the longest redemption arc in history, clipping the single to establish England as the undisputed kings of white-ball cricket.
They became the first team in history to hold both the T20 and one-day international versions of the World Cup, after beating Pakistan by five wickets in front of 80,462 in Melbourne.
Three years ago, he was player of the match as England clinched the 50-over World Cup at Lord’s. This time around, he saved his maiden half-century in T20 international cricket for a nervy run chase with the pressure on again. Which is just showing off.
He might, as ever, be the headline act on the biggest stage, but by no means was he the only hero of a thrilling final.
Quite how long the 12th over of Pakistan’s innings last in the memory remains to be seen. Will it linger so vividly as Wasim Akram’s one-two against Allan Lamb and Chris Lewis back in 1992? That remains indelible 30 years on.
The world – and the sport – has changed much in the time since. T20 is more disposable than its forebears. Even its brightest highlights are fleeting.
And yet Adil Rashid’s wicket-maiden deserves its little place in history. Has a better over ever been bowled in a T20 World Cup final?
It started with that rarest of achievements: he made Babar Azam look ungainly. A sharp turning googly deceived the great opener, who could only lob a return catch back to the bowler.
From the next five deliveries, Iftikhar Ahmed – a player who gets to net against the skill of Shadab Khan whenever he fancies – looked totally lost.
Rashid beat him on the outside edge twice. He did lay a bat on three, but that was as positive a description as it is fair to apply. Never did he look comfortable.
Rashid ended with the undeservedly prosaic figures of 2-22 from what had been a magnificent spell.
One player who did get what he was due was Sam Curran. The left-arm swing bowler started this competition with the remarkable analysis of five for 10 against Afghanistan.
His three for 12 in the final was some way more significant. His four overs included 15 dot balls and won him the player of the match award.
After signing for 137-8 from their 20 overs, Pakistan knew they needed a fast start. Luckily for them, they have the best in the business when it comes to first-over excellence.
On the last ball of his opening six, Shaheen Afridi curved a delivery back onto the stumps via Alex Hales’ pads. The player who razed India in the semi-final would have a negligible impact on the final against their rivals.
The opener Hales left behind, Jos Buttler, led some steady resistance for England in the powerplay, before Haris Rauf made his introduction to the final.
The MCG is a home from home for Rauf, having played BBL cricket there and excelled in T20 internationals, too. His love for the place will have been magnified in this game.
First, he encouraged Phil Salt – who was batting for the first time in the tournament after replacing the injury Dawid Malan – to scoop a catch to mid-wicket. Then, the big one, as he induced a regulation edge and had Buttler caught at the wicket by Rizwan.
Pakistan defence of their total was always going to be balanced on fine margins. With England on 89-4, with 49 required and 36 balls left, it felt like a pivotal moment had arrived.
A massive roar welcome the arrival of Rauf back into the attack. Simultaneously, Shaheen strode across the field after limping off minutes before, having apparently re-injured his right knee while taking the catch that removed Harry Brook.
And yet, he was done. He bowled one delivery, as England required 41 from 29, then limped from the field. Iftikhar’s five fill-in deliveries went for 13.
With Shaheen had gone Pakistan’s spirits. And Stokes ensured that, shortly after, so did their hopes of taking the trophy.
TV: World Cup Qualifier 2018 matches will be aired on on OSN Sports HD Cricket channel
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The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Specs%20
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
The biog
Favourite hobby: taking his rescue dog, Sally, for long walks.
Favourite book: anything by Stephen King, although he said the films rarely match the quality of the books
Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption stands out as his favourite movie, a classic King novella
Favourite music: “I have a wide and varied music taste, so it would be unfair to pick a single song from blues to rock as a favourite"
Key fixtures from January 5-7
Watford v Bristol City
Liverpool v Everton
Brighton v Crystal Palace
Bournemouth v AFC Fylde or Wigan
Coventry v Stoke City
Nottingham Forest v Arsenal
Manchester United v Derby
Forest Green or Exeter v West Brom
Tottenham v AFC Wimbledon
Fleetwood or Hereford v Leicester City
Manchester City v Burnley
Shrewsbury v West Ham United
Wolves v Swansea City
Newcastle United v Luton Town
Fulham v Southampton
Norwich City v Chelsea
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
Generation Start-up: Awok company profile
Started: 2013
Founder: Ulugbek Yuldashev
Sector: e-commerce
Size: 600 plus
Stage: still in talks with VCs
Principal Investors: self-financed by founder
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
Ads on social media can 'normalise' drugs
A UK report on youth social media habits commissioned by advocacy group Volteface found a quarter of young people were exposed to illegal drug dealers on social media.
The poll of 2,006 people aged 16-24 assessed their exposure to drug dealers online in a nationally representative survey.
Of those admitting to seeing drugs for sale online, 56 per cent saw them advertised on Snapchat, 55 per cent on Instagram and 47 per cent on Facebook.
Cannabis was the drug most pushed by online dealers, with 63 per cent of survey respondents claiming to have seen adverts on social media for the drug, followed by cocaine (26 per cent) and MDMA/ecstasy, with 24 per cent of people.
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Who is Ramon Tribulietx?
Born in Spain, Tribulietx took sole charge of Auckland in 2010 and has gone on to lead the club to 14 trophies, including seven successive Oceania Champions League crowns. Has been tipped for the vacant New Zealand national team job following Anthony Hudson's resignation last month. Had previously been considered for the role.
Student Of The Year 2
Director: Punit Malhotra
Stars: Tiger Shroff, Tara Sutaria, Ananya Pandey, Aditya Seal
1.5 stars
What is a calorie?
A food calorie, or kilocalorie, is a measure of nutritional energy generated from what is consumed.
One calorie, is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water by 1°C.
A kilocalorie represents a 1,000 true calories of energy.
Energy density figures are often quoted as calories per serving, with one gram of fat in food containing nine calories, and a gram of protein or carbohydrate providing about four.
Alcohol contains about seven calories a gram.
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
'Project Power'
Stars: Jamie Foxx, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Dominique Fishback
Director: Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman
Rating: 3.5/5
