England win the World Cup

GBnews24 desk//

England captain Eoin Morgan says he “never allowed” himself to imagine lifting the World Cup before his side’s astonishing victory over New Zealand in a thrilling final at Lord’s.

The game went to a super over after both sides scored 241 from 50 overs.

“I’ve said incredible 50 times since lifting the trophy,” Morgan told Test Match Special.

“The planning, hard work, dedication, commitment and the little bit of luck really did get us over the line.”

Morgan said he was “very thankful” that – despite England’s three defeats in the group stage – “people believed because we believed”.

But he added: “I’d never allow myself to imagine winning the World Cup. Cynical me!”

Ben Stokes, man of the match in the final, said: “So much hard work has gone in, this is what we aspire to be.

“I don’t think there will ever be a better game in cricket than that.

“There was no chance I wasn’t going to be there at the end. Those are the sorts of moments you live for as a professional cricketer.”

All-rounder Stokes scored 84 with grit and determination on a tricky pitch to anchor England, and his composure in both the final over and the super over helped claim a historic win.

Victory brought a sense of redemption for Stokes – in the World Twenty20 final four years ago he was hit for four sixes by Carlos Brathwaite as West Indies beat England in the final over.

Morgan described Stokes as “super human”, adding: “He really carried the team and our batting line-up