An enthralling Test contest between Australia and New Zealand saw Pat Cummins‘ men emerging triumphant, with the skipper himself hitting the winning runs. Though such moments are celebrated by fans, Cummins faced criticism on social media as he hit the winning runs when Alex Carey was batting on 98. Fans had kept their fingers crossed, hoping to see Carey reach the triple-digit score, having played a pivotal role in Australia’s win. But, it just wasn’t meant to be. Cummins, in his defence, said that he had no idea that his non-striking partner was on 98.
Australia needed 2 runs to win the match after Carey took a single and gave the strike to Cumins on the second delivery of the 65th over. Cummins defended the next three deliveries, giving fans hope of seeing Carey at the strike in the next over.
But, the Australia captain hit a boundary on the last delivery of the 65th over to finish the chase, leaving Carey not-out just 2 runs shy of his hundred.
Pat Cummins robbed Alex Carey well deserved and hit the winning runs against New Zealand on the last ball of the over when Alex Carey was batting on 98 at the other end. He said he was not aware of his teammate’s score.
Pat Cummins ” I had no idea he was on 98 ” (Smile)… pic.twitter.com/teHdUH9rom
— Sujeet Suman (@sujeetsuman1991) March 11, 2024
“Pretty tense, everyone was nervous the last couple of hours. Amazing win. (On winning runs) Anyway possible to win, I had no idea he (Carey) was on 98,” Cummin said in the post-match presentation.
In the post-match press conference, Carey said that he was more than happy to put the team first.
“I was happy with that,” Carey laughed. “I didn’t want to get on strike again.”
Further delving on the match, the Australia captain said that the first innings lead played a big role in the team’s triumph.
“The toss helped, it was funny how quickly the match moved on Day 1. First innings leads are always key for this reason. We’ve been on the other side of Tests plenty of time, I just told the boys to keep the scoreboard moving, stay busy and put the pressure on the opposition,” Cummins said.
“We’ve got an experienced side, the story of this series has been guys standing up in crunch moments. Love playing Test matches, best format of cricket and it pays off on days like this,” concluded the Australia captain.
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