More ache for Ainslie with Great Britain 4-0 down in America’s Cup
- Ben Ainslie was involved in a heated exchange with a New Zealand broadcaster
- Ineos Britannia are running out of opportunities to claw their way into the final
- Pete Burling’s Kiwis are three wins shy of triumphing for a third consecutive year
After an injection of anger failed to upend the order, Sir Ben Ainslie will have to pursue other means to save this America’s Cup final. A canon mounted on the bow, perhaps.
At 4-0 down, Ineos Britannia is fast running out of opportunities to validate their trenchant belief that they can beat Emirates Team New Zealand. The scoreboard is telling different stories.
Pete Burling’s Kiwis are now just three wins shy of lifting the trophy for a third time in a row and are yet to misplace a foil, sail or rudder. They have touched on perfection throughout the match so far, whereas their British opposition have been left to nurse various senses of injustice.
As for the legitimacy of their gripes, that is open to debate. On Sunday, it was Ainslie who misconstrued a question from a New Zealander on commentary duty, before then describing the inquisitor as a ‘f****** w*****’ during a live broadcast.
In Monday’s duel, the fracture point was less explosive, and yet it was more decisive in the bigger picture, with Ainslie issuing two protests against the New Zealanders at the height of a nip-and-tuck battle on the second leg.
Ben Ainslie and Great Britain went 4-0 down against New Zealand in the America’s Cup
Pete Burling’s Kiwis are now just three wins shy of lifting the trophy for a third time in a row
With no penalties called, the Kiwis went on to celebrate a 23-second victory in the tightest race of the series, while the Britannia crew seemed rather agitated by the number of decisions that have accumulated against them.
Ainslie’s co-helm, the former Team GB Olympic gold medallist Dylan Fletcher, articulated that sentiment quite pointedly.
Speaking in place of Ainslie, who had returned directly to the Britannia base, Fletcher said: ‘We obviously disagree with the umpires and don’t understand how they came to the conclusion.
‘We feel like a lot of calls have gone against us in this Cup and we are not sure why. We have to keep it out of the umpires’ hands and beat them easily on the water.’
It would be worth noting that few neutrals at dockside assessed the two incidents in Britain’s favour.
For now that seems the be the theme of this showdown – New Zealand simply have an edge, even if the performance margins between the two boats are smaller than 4-0 would suggest. It would be disingenuous to pin those numbers on good luck and uneven umpiring.
Burling’s manoeuvres have been tighter and there is also evidence they are fractionally faster on the all-important upwind legs when the breeze is light, meaning Ainslie is yet to have a nose ahead at the top gate in any of the four races.
New Zealand have touched on perfection while Ineos Britannia are nursing a sense of injustice
Ainslie was kept at arm’s length with New Zealand showing off their speed and defensive nous
That is despite him getting the jump on the Kiwis at the start line on Monday, which was a first for the match.
That led to a fiendishly close tussle, but once New Zealand capitalised on a small Britannia error in rounding the first buoy, they proved again that they had the speed and defensive nous to keep Ainslie at arm’s length.
The four-time Olympic champion’s hopes now rest on unearthing improvements during Tuesday’s gap in the schedule, with choppier seas and stronger winds forecast for the resumption on Wednesday.
Fletcher is sure those conditions will play into their hands.
He said: ‘We’re happy with a range of conditions and think they may struggle in the big waves. They are the only guys who really know because they have been looking at all the data all the time.
Great Britain’s hopes now rest on unearthing improvements during tomorrow’s break
‘I don’t think anyone has dropped their heads. We think we are still making gains. We will debrief as normal and come out even stronger. We are a close-knit family.’
Speaking from his yacht, ahead of opting out of formal media duties, Ainslie said: ‘It’s a good opportunity to take a day on shore. There are still moments when we are losing a click. But we can still come back from this. There’s still time.’
There is, but it is running out.
