New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum says he made the wrong decision to bowl first after his side were handed a 210-run defeat to England on Tuesday.
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The loss was the Black Caps’ second biggest in ODI history and McCullum put the blame squarely on himself after admitting he made the wrong call after winning the toss.
“I think sometimes you’ve got to admit when you get it wrong at the toss. And the way the ball started holding up a little bit in the second innings probably suggested we did get it wrong,” McCullum is quoted as saying by NZN.
“That was unfortunate but I still don’t think it should take away from how outstanding they were with the bat and the ball and in the field. It was a complete performance from England and we’ve got some work to do.”
Despite admitting he had made the wrong call, McCullum did not want to take any credit away from a spirited England side.
“I thought they were outstanding and to post 400 in any game is outstanding. Credit to England, they blew us off the park.”
England looked a complete different side to the one that was so bitterly disappointing in the 2015 World Cup and posted 400+ score for the first time ever in the 50-over format.
Excellent centuries from Jos Buttler and Joe Root pushed England on to the mammoth total, before the Kiwi’s could only manage 198 in reply.
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