Trent Boult and Kane Williamson direct the field during the ICC Cricket World Cup final against England. Photo / Photosport
Trent Boult and Kane Williamson direct the field during the ICC Cricket World Cup final against England. Photo / Photosport
They may not be leaving England with the ICC Cricket World Cup trophy but Tauranga's cricket stars Kane Williamson and Trent Boult will return home having inspired many young cricketers aspiring to make their mark in the sport one day.
Without actually losing - either the final or the followingSuper Over - the Black Caps lost the World Cup final against England on Monday morning in what is possibly the greatest ODI ever played.
Despite the teams being tied, the Williamson-captained squad lost by zero runs after the match was sent to a Super Over to determine the winner, England eventually claiming their first Cricket World Cup on a countback of boundaries and sixes scored in the final.
Coming home as runners-up won't have a negative impact on the sport, with local cricketers confident the success the Black Caps have had on the world stage will bring more youth to the sport and help instil a high quality of sportsmanship among those who look up to them.
Young Tauranga cricketers Tim Pringle and Ben Pomare, who are in Australia having represented New Zealand as part of the national Under-19 team in a series of one-day matches against their Australian counterparts, say the whole team stayed up to watch the Black Caps match and were proud of the players they look up to.
Tim Pringle and Ben Pomare, who played in the New Zealand under-19 team against Australia say Tauranga cricket stars Kane Williamson and Trent Boult are athletes to look up to. Photo / File
"I thought we had it in the bag up until that super over ... that was kind of hard to take," Pringle said.
New Zealand were the underdogs in the competition but proved anything can happen. They beating favourites India by 18 runs win on Wednesday (NZT) to secure their spot in the final.
Pringle, a Tauranga Boys' College student who not only dreams of playing for the Black Caps one day, would also love the chance to play a game of cricket with Williamson, says seeing what the Black Caps have done makes his own goals seem more attainable.
"Seeing these guys who have come out of Ōtūmoetai [College} and TBC [Tauranga Boys' College], it's quite cool for everyone in the Bay," he said.
"I've looked up to Kane ever since I was a small boy," the teenager said.
"I'm sure it will attract a lot of new faces as well."
Pomare casually described the final as "a pretty good game of cricket", and while he obviously would have enjoyed seeing New Zealand claim their first World Cup victory, he says "rules are what they are".
Williamson was named player of the tournament at the World Cup and Pomare says he and Boult give younger crickets plenty to look up to.
"I look up to them ... especially Kane going through TBC and what he's achieved at a young age," Pomare said.
"They do have a huge impact," Pomare said.
Bay of Plenty Cricket manager Tai Bridgman-Raison says Williamson and Boult are the epitome of what athletes should be, holding positive traits that go beyond their sporting achievements and successes.
Their sporting skills are evident - Williamson as one of the world's best batsmen and Boult, one of the best bowlers New Zealand has had for years - but Bridgman-Raison says it's their sportsmanship that makes them even more inspirational to young cricketers in the Bay and around New Zealand.
He says the Bay of Plenty cricket community could not ask for two better role models for the sport.
Their success on the world stage is what Bridgman-Raison believes will surely prompt more young people to take up cricket, while their humility, character and genuine sportsmanship will teach the next generation of cricketers about being athletes worthy of being looked up to.
"What an advertisement for the sport," Bridgman-Raison said.
