2019 Cricket World Cup Final: Super Over and Boundary Count Rule

The 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup final at Lord's between England and New Zealand on 14 July 2019 is one of the most extraordinary matches in cricket history. The teams tied on 241 runs. The Super Over also tied. England were declared winners on boundary count — a result that sparked widespread controversy and subsequently prompted the ICC to change the tie-breaking rules.

The Match: England Set 242

New Zealand batted first and scored 241/8. England, in their reply, needed 24 from the final 2 overs and 15 from the last over bowled by Trent Boult. Stokes hit a six. Then a throwing error ran out a fielder. Then a remarkable overthrow incident — the ball struck Stokes's outstretched bat and deflected for four additional runs (counted as 6) — one of the most debated moments in cricket law. England scored 15 off the final over, finishing on 241. The match was tied.

Stokes ran for a second run as a throw came in. The ball ricocheted off Stokes's outstretched bat and ran to the boundary — another 4 runs, plus the 2 already run = 6 additional runs from one ball. Under the laws at the time this was correct, though fiercely debated as unintentional. The ICC subsequently changed the law to award only the runs completed before the throw.

The Super Over: Another Tie

Both teams scored exactly 15 runs off their Super Over. England: Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes scored 15 from Trent Boult's over. New Zealand: Martin Guptill and James Neesham scored 15 from Jofra Archer's over. Guptill was run out off the last ball attempting a second run to tie on runs, failing by inches. Two Super Overs, both tied.

Boundary Count Rule: England Win

Under the ICC's 2019 rules, if a Super Over was tied, the winner was determined by who had hit more boundaries (fours and sixes) in the full match and Super Over combined. England had scored 26 boundaries to New Zealand's 17. England were declared World Cup champions. The New Zealand captain Kane Williamson received extraordinary admiration for his dignified acceptance of the result.

England's Path to the Final

England's 2019 World Cup campaign was built around Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper-batter), Jason Roy (opener), Ben Stokes (allrounder), and Jofra Archer (fast bowler making his ICC tournament debut). They had invested in ODI cricket since their catastrophic 2015 World Cup group stage exit, adopting a high-scoring aggressive approach that transformed English cricket. The 2019 title was their first ever World Cup trophy.