How the World Cup final inspired 'village cricketer' Leach
LONDON (92 News) - Jack Leach, who played an integral role in England's spectacular run chase against Australia in the third Ashes Test, said that the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019 final had inspired him and given him hope for an improbable win in the Headingley game.
Leach, who came in at No.11 with England still 73 runs behind the 359-run target, shared a pivotal 76-run stand with Ben Stokes to take the hosts to a memorable one-wicket victory to level the five-Test series. While Stokes took most of the strike during his remarkable 135*, Leach played the perfect second fiddle to him.
He revealed that watching Stokes' Player-of-the-Match performance in the World Cup final inspired him ahead of his Headingley knock. "I was watching the World Cup final as a fan and that showed that anything is possible," Leach said. "Ben Stokes was at the centre of that as well. Maybe Ben Stokes has to be at the centre of all things that are possible. He was just unbelievable.
"Obviously when I first went in, he was going to have a lot of the strike, being ready to run two, and I just broke it down into the balls that I had to face. It was a special feeling," he told Sky Sports. "Stokesy – unbelievable, like nothing I've ever seen before. The crowd – insane. To be part of that at the end was an incredible feeling." The bespectacled Leach formed a special connection with the supporters, who warmed up to his action of wiping his glasses clean regularly through the innings. "It's nice to have that," admitted the 28-year-old. "It's probably because I look like a village cricketer out there, in my glasses and with the bald head. "Maybe people think 'that could be me', because all the others look pretty professional. I just had to make sure they were clean every time I was facing up. I would really regret it if they had been smudged and I'd got out, then the cameras zoom in on the glasses and they say, 'he didn't clean his glasses'. I just had to stay calm and do the job at hand.""That was the best kiss I've ever had." – Ben Stokes after Jack Leach gave him a peck on the cheek 😆 #Ashes pic.twitter.com/5DSfi04foR
— ICC (@ICC) August 25, 2019
I thought I'd be watching the Ashes at home.