Is boundary countback fair? Never thought I'd answer that: Kane Williamson
London: A "gutted" New Zealand captain Kane Williamson finds it difficult to accept that his team lost the World Cup final to England on a "boundary countback" rule but the revered "gentleman" of the 'Gentlemen's game' isn't angry about it.
New Zealand lost to England in perhaps the greatest World Cup final at the Lord's on Sunday due to inferior boundary count (16 in 50 overs to hosts' 24) after both the regulation 50 overs and the Super Over ended in ties.
"I suppose you never thought you would have to ask that question and I never thought I would have to answer it (smiling)," was his reaction when asked about the rule.
"While the emotions are raw, it is pretty hard to swallow when two teams have worked really, really hard to get to this moment in time.
"When sort of two attempts to separate them with a winner and a loser it still doesn't perhaps sort of shine with one side coming through, you know," Williamson summed it up nicely.
However, like a true sportsman, he had no intention of questioning the questionable rules set by governing body, slammed as "ridiculous" by former cricketers.
"It is what it is, really. The rules are there at the start. No-one probably thought they would have to sort of result to some of that stuff. A great game of cricket and all you guys probably enjoyed it," he said.
There were the "uncontrollables" like the Martin Guptill overthrow which hit a lunging Ben Stokes' bat and went for six overthrows in the 50th over of the England innings.
Williamson, after a break, he would like to have a chat and reflect on the tough evening.
"As to everyone else, I think they are still here, they want more. But we are looking forward to putting our feet up now and having a bit of a chat and reflection about our campaign," he said.
Whether it's the overthrows off a rebound or boundary count-back, Williamson says that he can't blame the rules which have been in place for some time now.
"The rules are there I guess, aren't they. And certainly something you don't consider going into the match that maybe if we could have an extra boundary and then tied two attempts at winning, it we will get across the line and they didn't think that either," he said.
There was a lot of pain in his smile. The eyes were a giveaway. What could he have done, laugh, cry or be angry at what happened an hour back?
"Laugh or cry, it's your choice, isn't it? It's not anger. There's a lot of disappointment, I suppose. Yeah, the guys are really feeling it and I think it's probably more down to some of the uncontrollables that go on when they have put in such a huge amount of effort," he said.
A journalist wanted to remind Williamson that he has used a lot of smart phrases like "uncontrollable" and "thin margins" and the skipper stopped him in his tracks.
"Dogs as well, I have used dogs," he laughed referring to terms like "underdogs" and "party-poopers" used by the British media before the start of the finals.
There couldn't have been a better final. "Yeah, everybody loved it? The English loved it more than we did, I think," he quipped.
Trent Boult touched the boundary ropes during the dying moments trying to latch onto a catch and Williamson very sportingly told umpire Marais Erasmus to signal a six.
A TV replay could have been demanded but he knew that his fielder had touched the ropes.
So doesn't he expect all players to be gentleman like him? No, he doesn't, Williamson made it clear that it is to each his own.
"Everybody is allowed to be themselves. That is a good thing about the world. And everybody should be a little bit different as well. Really difficult question to answer< he said.
"That is probably my best answer, just be yourself and try and enjoy what you do," he left the room amid a standing ovation.
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Magnitude 7.5 quake in northern Japan injures 23 people and triggers a 2-foot tsunami
Tokyo (AP): A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck off northern Japan late Monday, injuring 23 people and triggering a tsunami in Pacific coast communities, officials said. Authorities warned of possible aftershocks and an increased risk of a megaquake.
The Japanese government was still assessing damages from the tsunami and late-evening quake, which struck at about 11:15 p.m. in the Pacific Ocean, around 80 kilometers (50 miles) off the coast of Aomori, the northernmost prefecture of Japan's main Honshu island.
“I've never experienced such a big shaking,” convenience store owner Nobuo Yamada told the public broadcaster NHK in the Aomori prefecture town of Hachinohe, adding that “luckily” power lines were still operating in his area.
A tsunami of up to 70 centimeters (2 feet, 4 inches) was measured in Kuji port in Iwate prefecture, just south of Aomori, and tsunami levels of up to 50 centimeters struck other coastal communities in the region, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.
The Fire and Disaster Management Agency said 23 people were injured, including one seriously. Most of them were hit by falling objects, NHK reported, adding that several people were injured in a hotel in Hachinohe and a man in Tohoku was slightly hurt when his car fell into a hole.
The meteorological agency reported the quake's magnitude as 7.5, down from its earlier estimate of 7.6. It issued an alert for potential tsunami surges of up to 3 meters (10 feet) in some areas and later downgraded to an advisory.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara urged residents to go to higher ground or seek shelter until advisories were lifted. He said about 800 homes were without electricity, and that the Shinkansen bullet trains and some local lines were suspended in parts of the region.
Nuclear power plants in the region were conducting safety checks, Kihara said. The Nuclear Regulation Authority said about 450 liters (118 gallons) of water spilled from a spent fuel cooling area at the Rokkasho fuel reprocessing plant in Aomori, but that its water level remained within the normal range and there was no safety concern.
About 480 residents were taking shelter at the Hachinohe Air Base, and 18 defense helicopters were mobilized for a damage assessment, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said.
About 200 passengers were stranded for the night at New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido, NHK reported.
The meteorological agency issued a caution about possible aftershocks in the coming days. It said there is a slight increase in risk of a magnitude 8-level quake and possible tsunami occurring along Japan's northeastern coast from Chiba, just east of Tokyo, to Hokkaido. The agency urged residents in 182 municipalities in the area to monitor their emergency preparedness in the coming week.
Satoshi Kato, a vice principal of a public high school in Hachinohe, told NHK that he was at home when the quake struck, and that glasses and bowls fell and smashed into shards on the floor.
Kato said he drove to the school because it was designated an evacuation center, and on the way he encountered traffic jams and car accidents as panicked people tried to flee. Nobody had yet come to the school to take shelter, he said.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in brief comments to reporters that the government set up an emergency task force to urgently assess the extent of damage. “We are putting people's lives first and doing everything we can,” she said.
Later, she urged residents in the region to pay attention to the latest information from local municipalities. “Please be prepared so you can immediately evacuate as soon as you feel a tremor."
The quake struck about 80 kilometers (50 miles) northeast of Hachinohe, and about 50 kilometers (30 miles) below the sea surface, the meteorological agency said.
It was just north of the Japanese coast that suffered the magnitude 9.0 quake and tsunami in 2011 that killed nearly 20,000 people and destroyed the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
“You need to prepare, assuming that a disaster like that could happen again," the meteorological agency's earthquake and volcano division official Satoshi Harada said.
At 6:20 a.m. on Tuesday morning, authorities lifted all tsunami advisories for the Pacific coastline in northern Japan, NHK said.
The US Geological Survey reported another earthquake, with a magnitude 5.1, early on Tuesday, about 122 kilometers (76 miles) south of Honcho, at a depth of 35 kilometers. No other details were immediately available.
