Chasing 138, England beat Pakistan in a low-scoring contest to win the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup by five wickets, with six balls to spare.
England were crowned the new T20 World Champion after they beat Pakistan by five wickets in the final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Sunday.
This was England’s second T20 World title after they won the first time in 2010 under Paul Collingwood’s captaincy and become the first dual white-ball champions, holding both the 50 and 20-over titles at the same.
After being asked to bat, Pakistan posted 137 for eight in their 20 overs and in their response England chased down the target in 19 overs to finish on 138 for five.
Earlier, Pakistan had a cautious start to their innings. Captain Babar Azam added 39 runs for the third wicket with Shan Masood. The innings appeared to be back on track. But Pakistan lost Azam and Iftikhar Ahmed in quick succession. The innings never really recovered from those two blows as they struggled at 85 for four. Masood added 36 runs for the fifth wicket with Shadab Khan. Then post that the innings simply nosedived as they were restricted to 137 for eight in their 20 overs. For England the best bowlers were Sam Curran (3-12), Adil Rashid (2-22) and Chris Jordan (2-27).
In their chase, England lost Alex Hales early. Phil Salt fell soon after. Skipper Jos Buttler fell with the score on 45. At that stage, England needed a partnership. They got that through a 39 run fourth wicket stand between Ben Stokes and Harry Brook. Any further doubts in the chase was wiped away when Stokes joined forces with Moeen Ali. Stokes and Ali added 48 runs for the fifth wicket. In the end, England chased down the target in 19 overs. Stokes remained unbeaten on 52 off 49 balls with five boundaries and a six. Pakistan was unlucky not to have the services of Shaheen Afridi as he struggled to finish his third over. For Pakistan the best bowler was Haris Rauf (2-23).
Match Summary
Pakistan: 137-8 (20)
Fall of wickets: 1-29 (Mohammad Rizwan-4.2 ov), 2-45 (Mohammad Haris-7.1 ov), 3-84 (Babar Azam-11.1 ov), 4-85 (Iftikhar Ahmed-12.2 ov), 5-121 (Shan Masood-16.3 ov), 6-123 (Shadab Khan-17.2 ov), 7-129 (Mohammad Nawaz-18.3 ov), 8-131 (Mohammad Wasim-19.3 ov)
England: 138-5 (19)
Fall of wickets: 1-7 (Alex Hales-0.6 ov), 2-32 (Phil Salt-3.3 ov), 3-45 (Jos Buttler-5.3 ov), 4-84 (Harry Brook-12.3 ov), 5-132 (Moeen Ali-18.2 ov).
Source: cricketworld.com