England vs New Zealand, 41st match at Chester-le-Street, , Jul 03 2019 - Ball by Ball Commentary

6.40pm So, that just about wraps it up from here. It's been a wild ride, but England have done the bare minimum that was expected of them coming into their home World Cup. They've reached the semi-finals, and it all starts again from here. Two matches to make history... and it's not all over for New Zealand either, despite three losses on the trot. Barring miracles, they'll be featuring in their eighth semi-final in 12 editions, at Old Trafford on Tuesday.

From Andrew Miller, Alex Malcolm, Thilak Gowda and the rest of the team - including Dan Brettig on the Live Report - good bye, and see you tomorrow for Afghanistan v West Indies!

Meanwhile, kudos to Sachin Tendulkar ... who told us what would happen way back in May... he can't be a God without being omnipotent!

6.35pm aarkayne: "isnt it relevant for people to know that the last time Eng and India met in a semi-final was in 1987 at the Wankhede in Mumbai? Gooch and Gatting did India in. It appears these countries meet each other when they are hosting and end up dashing the hopes of the hosting nation....jes sayin" Hmmm.... fair point! I guess England will have to hope that Edgbaston is a home venue for India once again!

Pranav: "Lastly,can we call that freak runout of Williamson "Touch-Wood?" " If you like ...

Eoin Morgan: "We were outstanding today, started with the two boys at the top laying a solid platform, Jonny's hundred was matchwinning, the wicket changed after the 25th over, every batsman after that found it, but runs on the board at that stage was encouraging."

On the bat-first tournament: "We can do both, if the wicket dictates that 280-300 is far, we can do that. All the wickets have got slower and lower throughout, it has been a theme, and if it continues, we will continue to bat first."

"I think the manner we've displayed in the last two games has been the identity we've been working to for the last four years. Hope to produce that aggressive positive energy."

On the preference of facing India or Australia, Morgan adds: nope. Just happy to be there. As well he might be!

Kane Williamson: "Not ideal to have three defeats, the recipe is simple but not easy. We need to play a better brand of cricket, the margins have looked big, but there have been a lot of variables. We have to learn from it and move forward. They outplayed us in all facets and deserved the win, but it slowed down a lot after the first 20 overs, the cutters into the pitch started to stick."

"At the halfway stage we were happy to pull it back, but we needed to build partnerships to take the game deep. We haven't had a flow with our batting, but you're still trying to apply something of substance."

On the batting: "There's been so much to learn from, the guys are working really hard to be better, a lot of learning curves. Going ahead, hopefully it works out and we are in a semi, but it all starts again. Anything can happen, and we know we haven't played our best cricket yet."

Ferguson's niggle is "precautionary, but minor"... he'll be fine.

6.24pm So England will definitely be playing at Edgbaston in the second semi-final next Thursday, but who will be their opponent? Probably India, but as Jagat notes: "There is still a possibility that India tops the group if India beats SL and Aussie lose to SAF. And India can avoid playing against England in Birmingham...Just saying..."

Sudheer varma: "God...!!!! Are you kidding??? beating Bangladesh by whooping 316 run margin with the kind of form there are now.. Pakistan should first try not to loose against them rather than dream about winning by large margin.. its the new age team and their performance is very impressive in this worldcup..."

Tanvir: "How on earth do you say it's not over yet?! Did you see the margin? Why give false hopes man come on? I have a better chance of landing my crush (and that is impossible because I have no crush atm) than Pakistan going through to the semis. " Well, find yourself a crush and land her, man! Honestly ... you've got to be in to win it, old fruit!

6.20pm The Player of the Match is Jonny Bairstow: "Really pleased, we knew these were must-win games, the performances in a couple of games hadn't been quite up to scratch. On a different day we could have been bowling first, but the guys applied themselves pretty well. I think batting with Jason for a period of time helps. You understand each other's games and moods. NZ are a class side, so we needed to put in a performance today, and we're pleased to do that after a tough few weeks."

"A couple of days off, a few days to get away and rest up after two gruelling games. Some soreness, so refresh and meet up in two or three days. We've given ourselves an opportunity in these last two games."

6.17pm Handshakes all round ... and here's official word from S Rajesh, our statsguru-in-chief. Pakistan will need to beat Bangladesh by 316 runs at Lord's on Friday to oust New Zealand. "That is, if they score 400, they need to keep Bangladesh to 84 or less. The exact margin will change depending on scores." It's not over yet!

6.15pm For the first time since 1992 ... when England beat South Africa in the crazy rain-rule game at Sydney ... England are into a World Cup semi-final! They've taken the scenic route, but that's only appropriate for a team that has been round the houses in the last six editions ... why make it easy when you've made your white-ball life so difficult for a generation!

"Sweet Caroline" rings out as the crowd starts to party

Sooryanarayanan: "I must admit Mark Wood has been really impressive this WC. He's been vital for England in picking up crucial wickets and cleaning up the tail as well with ease. Not to forget the speeds he's been clocking. " Hang on, that's an actual comment about the cricket, not the NRR ... are you feeling okay?

Atiq: "I know that this comment wont be published, but i usually have better odds of having my comments picked up by cricinfo if i start with "I know that this comment wont be published" :)" Yep, it's another means to hack the system. Works every time (except when it doesn't)

Sujoy Banik: "Andrew , England's opponent in semifinal is India, not NZ. don't be so happy already!" At Edgbaston, with those short boundaries? What's not to like?

Sunny: "There is still a possibility for Pakistan to make it to the semis, if they bat first and beat Bangladesh by 300 runs right?" Umm ... yes, I guess so. But Sarfaraz will doubtless forget this and choose to bowl