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LONDON: England´s Ben Stokes hailed Sunday´s dramatic Super Over victory over New Zealand to win the Cricket World Cup as the culmination of four years´ hard work.
The hosts have bounced back from being humiliated at the World Cup four years ago to become the number one side in the world.
England seemed set to fall short at Lord´s until Stokes hit 84 not out to ensure the scores were tied, with both sides hitting 241 runs from their 50 overs.
Stokes struck another eight not out from three balls in the Super Over as England scored 15 in the shootout, a score that New Zealand matched.
England won by virtue of hitting more boundaries in the match.
“Pretty lost for words,” said an exhausted Stokes. “All the hard work over that four years to get here and we´re champions of the world. It´s an amazing feeling.”
It was not an easy ride for England, whose defeats against Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Australia in the group stage put them on the brink of elimination.
But Morgan´s men kept their cool to defeat India and New Zealand and book a last-four spot before crushing Australia in the semi-finals and surviving one final test of their nerve against New Zealand.
While England celebrated, it was another heart-breaking loss for New Zealand, who also finished as runners-up in the previous World Cup in 2015 after losing to Australia in the final.