England captain Eoin Morgan admitted that his team was "devastated" after they were knocked out of the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 with a five-wicket loss to New Zealand in the first semi-final at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi on Wednesday (November 10).
Morgan further said that England thought they were in the game until the 17th and 18th overs, but James Neesham's quickfire cameo of 27 runs off just 11 snatched the momentum.
However, the skipper was proud of his players for the way they played throughout the T20 World Cup 2021 while saying the Abu Dhabi pitch was tough where both teams struggled in the semi-final.
Morgan said in a post-match presentation: “We're devastated. To be on the wrong side of a close game is not easy to take. I thought we fought unbelievably well today on a wicket that didn't necessarily suit our batting, but we managed to post in and around a par score. We were brilliant with the ball.”
He further added, “Coming into the game we knew both sides were close in skill. Full credit to Kane and his team. They outplayed us today. We have represented ourselves in this tournament really well. I’m proud of the guys. They have given everything in this tournament.”
The skipper further said of the contest, “Thought we were right in the game until probably the 17th, 18th overs. We were right in the game probably until Jimmy Neesham came to the wicket, if not ahead of the game. We had them exactly where we wanted them up until that point. It was (sluggish). I think throughout those innings everybody struggled to clear the ropes on both sides, and I think that was just the nature of the pitch. You have to take your hat off to him: he played really well.
Morgan concluded, “We're a six-hitting side but we struggled to hit sixes. But we hung in there and posted probably a par score. To come out and hit sixes from ball one like that - full credit to him (Neesham). Absolutely love playing cricket at the moment. At the forefront of change both on and off the field (the team).”
(With ANI Inputs)
