New Zealand batter Daryl Mitchell was ecstatic after his side defeated England by five wickets to enter the final of the ICC men's T20 World Cup, at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi, on Wednesday.
The opener’s unbeaten 72-run knock and James Neesham's 27 off just 11 balls helped New Zealand chase down 167 and defeat England by five wickets in the first semi-final.
"It was a bit of a whirl at the end there. I couldn't remember what was going on, but I'm happy I got the job done.
"It was a challenging surface with the new ball, and it was two-paced. The way (Devon) Conway set the platform and (Jamesh Neeham) Neesh hit a few out of the ground was amazing," said Mitchell, at the post-match presentation.
"We knew one or two good overs would do it, and we got the momentum back thanks to Neesham's hitting.
“With what's going on around the world right now, it's amazing that my old man travelled halfway around the world to watch me play; so this is a proud moment," he added.
Chasing, New Zealand got off to the worst start possible as the side lost opening batter Martin Guptill (4) in the very first over, bowled by Chris Woakes.
The Kiwis were given a body blow in the third over when Woakes sent skipper Kane Williamson (5) back.
After the end of the powerplay, New Zealand's score read 36 for 2.
Conway and Mitchell found run-scoring difficult and at the halfway mark, New Zealand were 58 for 2, needing 109 runs to win from 60 balls.
The 82-run stand for the third wicket was finally broken by Liam Livingstone when he had Conway (46) stumped by Jos Buttler with New Zealand still needing 72 runs to win from 38 balls.
Glenn Phillips (2) was Livingstone’s second victim and England were in control with New Zealand 107 for 4 in the 16th over.
The game changed course in the 17th over, bowled by Chris Jordon, as Neesham and Mitchell scored 23 runs.
With New Zeeland needing 34 to win off 18 balls there was another twist as Adil Rashid sent Neesham (27) back to the pavilion, and the Kiwis required 20 to win from 12 balls.
In the end, Mitchell guided New Zealand to a five-wicket victory with six balls to spare.
New Zealand will now face the winner of the second semi-final between Pakistan and Australia in the summit clash on Sunday at the Dubai International Stadium.
