New Zealand PM to attend cricket final over Lee funeral

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key decided not to attend Lee Kuan Yew’s funeral and left behind a bruising byelection defeat to be in Melbourne Sunday as he led his nation’s obsession with the World Cup final. After failing six times in the semi-finals, New Zealand have finally made the ultimate showdown of ODI cricket’s glamour tournament. Their unbeaten progress through pool and knockout stages, mixing aggression on the field with humility off it, has captivated the country en route to meeting nearest neighbours and bitter rivals Australia in the final. A huge outpouring of accolades for the New Zealand team — and personable captain Brendon McCullum with his “living the dream” approach — has dominated the news.

It was a difficult decision because obviously I want to go to both.

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key

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