New Delhi: England, unbeaten and already qualified for the semi-finals, stamped their authority in their T20 World Cup campaign by registering a 4-wicket win over New Zealand. As a result, Pakistan and New Zealand remain locked in a fight for the second semi-final spot in Group 2.
A thrilling finishing act involving an unbeaten 44-run partnership between Rehan Ahmed and Will Jacks ensured they complete a memorable win.
Chasing 160, England were off to a horrible start in the chase as they were reduced to 2/2 with Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson bowling well. Last match’s centurion Harry Brook unsettled the original lines and helped England recover slightly. However, it was brief as Phillips ended that in the eighth over with Brook departing for 26.
Every once in a while, Glenn Phillips pulls off a stunner in the field. In the ninth over off Ravindra’s bowling, he dove forward at deep mid-wicket and took a freakish catch with both hands, just inches off the ground to dismiss Jacob Bethell (21). Tom Banton and Sam Curran stitched a 42-run partnership to steady the ship.
England bowled 16 overs of spin to restrict New Zealand to 159/7 in their T20 World Cup Super Eights clash in Colombo on Friday. England and Co had already qualified for the semi-finals but New Zealand needed a win to guarantee a semi-final slot
Openers Tim Seifert and Finn Allen initially struggled to tackle Jofra Archer who provided a magnificent start with a maiden over but both openers were on to him eventually as they raced to 54/0 in the powerplay. Nearly all batters got off to good starts but none of them stayed long enough to convert it.
The duo stitched a 64-run partnership at the top before Adil Rashid dismissed Seifert (35) with a slower delivery through the air.
In the next over, Will Jacks dismissed Allen for 29. Jacks returned the best figures with 2/23. Rachin Ravindra who shone against Sri Lanka, was dismissed by Rehan Ahmed – the extra spinner who made his T20 World Cup debut to replace seamer Jamie Overton – for 11.
Glenn Phillips top-scored with 39 off 28 including four fours and a six. England ended up bowling just four overs of pace after that as spinners made inroads. Archer finished with 0/24 in three overs while Sam Curran finished with 0/10 in one over.
England have never bowled so many overs of spin before in a T20I. While Jacks was the standout bowler, Adil Rashid picked up 2/28 and is now England’s leading wicket-taker in the tournament with 11 wickets. He was well-supported by Ahmed (2/28). Liam Dawson (1/32) and Jacob Bethell (0/13) were the other spinners employed by England.
“We trained here last night, so we got the information on the conditions. And I think whether we bat or bowl first, it will be imperative that we really finalise what those conditions are in the first few overs and communicate that around,” said Jacks after the mid-innings break.
After 14 overs, New Zealand comfortably sat with 123/3 in 14 overs and were looking poised to score above 170. But Rashid got Mike Chapman first ball after the second drinks break and suddenly New Zealand lost momentum.
Daryl Mitchell (3) came in and played dots and the pressure piled on. Well-set Phillips lost his flow as well. Cole McConchie (14) tried to slog towards the back-end and managed a couple of boundaries.
