Coney steals one
In the previous World Cup, New Zealand hearts were broken as they went down fighting against England in the semifinal, taking the match to the last over.
In the 1983 World Cup, another thriller was in store for the crowd who assembled to watch the match at Edgbaston and the participants were the same as before.
New Zealand were under more pressure, as a loss here would seriously hamper their chances of progression to the semis, while England started the match having won their first three games.
England took first strike after winning the toss, and the innings progressed serenely as the openers Graeme Fowler and Chris Tavare put on 63 for the first wicket, before Tavare was dismissed by the medium pace of Jeremy Coney.
England then experimented with the big-hitting Ian Botham at three, an experiment that failed as Botham was caught and bowled by John Bracewell after hitting a four and a six in his 12.
The stage was set for the left-handed David Gower, one of the best timers of the ball to have stepped on a cricket field. Gower played a sublime innings of 92 off 96 deliveries, but after Fowler went for a well-crafted 69 off 112, he received negligible support from the middle and lower-order batsman. While Gower was caressing 6 fours and hitting 4 sixes, Allan Lamb, Mike Gatting, and wicketkeeper Ian Gould all departed with single-digit scores.
Gower single-handedly kept the scoreboard moving till the last man Bob Willis was trapped in front by Ewen Chatfield, denying Gower a great century. England were all out for 234, with 4.4 overs remaining. The score, thanks mainly to Gower and Fowler, was competitive on a pitch with uneven bounce.
New Zealand seemed dead in the water after Bob Willis removed both openers with only three runs on the board, but Geoff Howarth coming in at number three buckled down and embarked upon a rebuilding job. New Zealand were put under more pressure when Jeff Crowe departed for a watchful 47-ball 17, bowled by pacer Allott, and his talented brother Martin was out 28 runs later, bowled by off-spinner Vic Marks for 20.
Allrounder Jeremy Coney came in with the score reading 75 for 4, with a further 160 to win. He struck up a 71-run partnership with the patient Howarth. Disaster struck when Howarth was run out for 60 with the score on 146, and five runs later Botham rattled Ian Smith’s stumps. New Zealand were staring down the barrel of defeat and possible elimination from the Cup at 151 for six. Hadlee came in at number eight to try and repair the situation with Coney, who was coolly accumulating runs as things fell apart around him, piercing the field with the odd boundary. Their partnership turned the tables on England and when Hadlee departed for 31 having put on 70 with Coney, New Zealand needed only 14 more to win with three wickets in hand.
There was further drama as Lance Cairns was trapped leg-before by Willis, leaving England with only two wickets to take. But it was to be New Zealand’s day, as they started the last over needing four to win, and John Bracewell settled the issue by hitting a four off the penultimate ball.
For his match-winning, unbeaten 60 off 97 balls (9 fours) and figures of 2 for 27, Coney was named man-of-the-match. That was the last bit of joy for New Zealand though, as they lost
the next two matches to Pakistan and Sri Lanka and crashed out of the Cup.
