The Black Caps finished runners-up for the second World Cup in a row. Photo/ Andrew Cornaga / Photosport
The Black Caps finished runners-up for the second World Cup in a row. Photo/ Andrew Cornaga / Photosport
Whanganui cricket leaders are hoping the Black Caps' performance at the Cricket World Cup will help inspire the local game.
Cricket Wanganui general manager Dilan Raj watched as the game that went down to the last ball of a super over with his family overnight on Sunday.
The contest ended in the most agonising of circumstances with the Black Caps scoring one run off the final ball to tie the score but handing England, who scored more boundaries throughout the match, the title.
Despite his feelings on the outcome, Raj said the contest was awesome for cricket.
"The way the Black Caps played, the spirit of cricket that they showed and the culture within that group, that is exactly the way the game should be played," he said.
"That's how everyone is taught how to play and at the end of the day, those little things that went to us in the semifinal against India, they didn't go for us this morning.
Raj has a busy few months ahead as he organises the Whanganui Chronicle Cup as well as primary school tournaments and coach visits taking place in October.
He believes many children will have missed the final due to the time it aired, but expects some will take up cricket due to their parents' increased interest in it during the World Cup.
Dilan Raj (centre) expects more young people to take up cricket due to their parents' interest in it during the World Cup. Photo / Stuart Munro
Whanganui's White Fern and Central Hinds representative Jess Watkin said she has been involved in one super over, playing for a Whanganui club team.
"It's definitely better than a bowl-off, but it's hard for any team. For the Black Caps, Trent Boult just had that intense over and then he has to back it up with another," she said.
"For England, all of their batters thought their World Cup was done and then they've got to come back out and bat.
"It's pretty rough, but I guess there's got to be some kind of rule for the outcome of the game. There's always going to be someone who's not happy at the end of the day."
Jess Watkin said a super over was hard for any team, but there had to be a rule to decide the outcome of a game. Photo / Bevan Conley
Watkin has been attending camps with the White Ferns in Christchurch during the off-season as they prepare for a busy 2020.
It starts with a tour at home where they will take on the visiting South Africans in one-day international action on January 25.
They will then play five Twenty20 matches against them building into the 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup hosted by Australia.
Watkin said training at home provided a great opportunity to work on everything, nail the basics and do what they do best.
"It's such an exciting time for women's cricket having the under 19 World Cup for the first time ever and the Commonwealth Games, it's just been put in there too.
"Then we've got our own World Cup, that's the focus, the home World Cup. We're going to put everything into that."
