T20 World Cup 2021: Marais Erasmus, Richard Kettleborough Set To Officiate In New Zealand-Australia Final
The 2021 T20 World Cup final between Australia and New Zealand will be officiated on the field by two experienced umpires, Marais Erasmus and Richard Kettleborough. Indian elite umpire, Nitin Menon, will be acting as the third umpire for the grand final.
2019 ODI World Cup on-field umpire, Kumar Dharmasena will be the fourth umpire for the same while another Lankan official, Ranjan Madugulle, will be the match referee. The two teams will battle it out at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday at 7:30 pm IST.
The two finalists of the T20 World Cup 2021
In the first semifinal between New Zealand and England, Kane Williamson’s men came out on top in a nail-biting encounter in Abu Dhabi. After setting a target of 167 for the Kiwis, England was ahead throughout the run chase but faltered when it mattered the most.
Needing 57 runs off the final four overs, James Neesham and Daryl Mitchell’s late assault saw the Kiwis finish the chase in just three overs with five wickets remaining. It was a heartbreaking loss for Eoin Morgan and co, who were billed as the favourites for the tournament right from the beginning.
The second semifinal then took place on Thursday between Australia and the unbeaten Pakistan team. The game flowed in a similar fashion to the first semis, with Pakistan putting up a total of 176 on the board. In response, Australia was in deep waters at 96/5 with the last recognized batting pair of Matthew Wade and Marcus Stoinis at the crease.
The duo stitched a terrific unbeaten partnership of 81 which took them home with one over to spare. Wade smashed three consecutive sixes off the in-form pacer, Shaheen Afridi, to finish off the proceedings on the night.
