Two words.
Boundary countback.
Here’s a few more.
You are b*#&$y joking.
New Zealand and England played out an epic World Cup final.
Incredibly, the score was tied at the end of 100 overs and again at the end of the super over tie-breaker.
But England claimed the title thanks to a rule nobody knew about.
The home team won on a boundary countback.
England hit 26 boundaries to New Zealand’s 17.
The ICC has since abandoned the obscure rule and in future, super overs will be repeated until one team has more runs than the other.
They set the benchmark early but faltered late and were lucky to make the semifinals in the final analysis.
But they clawed their way past a more talented Indian side in the semifinal and went as close as you can get to winning the tournament without actually winning it.
Kane Williamson was named player of the tournament.
He scored 578 runs at an average of 82.57 and enhanced his reputation as one of the most tenacious players in the game.
And fast bowler Lockie Ferguson was a revelation with 21 wickets at an average of 19.47.
With the red ball, Neil Wagner has led the way with his combination of endless energy and accurate bumpers.
He picked up a brace of five-wicket bags against Bangladesh and England and was the leading wicket-taker for his adopted country leading into the Boxing Day test.
Ross Taylor, BJ Watling and Tom Latham all scored test double hundreds.
Taylor had scored 601 runs at 66.77 in the first seven tests of the year but the big surprise package was Colin de Grandhomme with 303 runs at an average of 75.75 and a strike rate of 88.33.
At the domestic level, Otago struggled in the Plunket Shield and was middle of the road in the twenty20 tournament.
But the Volts set the benchmark in the one-day tournament and earned the right to host the final.
They slumped to 57 for seven but Michael Rippon (82) and Christi Viljoen (87 not out) put on 146 for the eighth wicket to help drag the Volts through to a competitive total of 234 for eight.
Wellington hit plenty of potholes but recovered to win by three wickets in a reasonably tense finish.
The Sparks were missing star player Suzie Bates for most of the season and finished fourth in both formats. Their big challenge for the future will be to unearth another champion batsman and build their depth.
In club cricket, Green Island farewelled retiring stalwarts Dion Lobb and Anthony Harris in style with a third consecutive Bing Harris. Lobb played more than 400 senior games for the club and took 852 wickets.
The awards
The Hit and Hope (for the most underrated so sorry we ever doubted you player): Colin de Grandhomme
The One Arm Bandit (for the most overrated non-wicket-taking spinner): Mitchell Santner
The Blind Billy (for overlooking three or four more threatening spinners and going with an innocuous left-armer): Gary Stead and Gavin Larsen
*Statistics correct as of December 25.
