Ben Stokes powers England to second T20 World Cup title
After 45 hotly contested matches in the ongoing T20 World Cup in Australia, the tournament finally crowned the winner after Jos Buttler’s England brushed aside Pakistan to clinch their second T20 World Cup title, joining West Indies as the only team with two titles. Sam Curran and Ben Stokes were in inspired form for the Three Lions as they dashed Babar Azam’s hopes of replicating their triumph in the 1992 WC final against the same side at the same venue.
Chasing a record-setting second title, England were pegged back instantly after Shaheen Afridi did what the Indian team could not do in the semi-final; getting rid of Alex Hales. Despite that earlier blow, the English skipper ensured a fast start for his side with a 17-ball 26. England were racing away in the powerplay before the introduction of speedster Haris Rauf.
The Pakistani pacer, who has a Big Bash hat-trick to his name at the ‘G’, scalped two quick wickets, including the crucial wicket of Buttler, to halt England’s assault. England were in a spot of bother, but they had the right man at the right time in the middle in the form of Ben Stokes. The mercurial all-rounder who has a tendency of rising to the occasion, rose again to keep Pakistan at bay.
While Ben Stokes’ stay in the middle was nuisance enough for Babar Azam’s side, they lost their influential pacer Shaheen Afridi to an injury, delivering a hammer blow to their side’s chances. England took full toll of their opponent’s misfortune as Moeen Ali chipped in with a decisive cameo to bring his side to the cusp of victory. However, it was England’s red-ball skipper, who hit the winning runs as England became the first men’s side to hold both the 50-over and 20-over title at the same time.
Sam Curran and Adil Rashid restrict Pakistan to a par total in the final
Jos Buttler won the toss on a memorable day and put the Men in Green to bat first in front of a bustling MCG. Pakistan, who took the pitch in hopes of emulating the triumph in the 1992 WC final, received an early sign that it might be their day after England’s Ben Stokes overstepped on the very first delivery of the match, bowling his side’s first no-ball of the tournament.
Unfortunately, that was the only early joy for the Pakistanis as the in-form Sam Curran got rid of the dangerous Mohammad Rizwan in the fifth over of the match. His dismissal brought in the prodigious Mohammad Haris to the crease, who was adamant about hitting every ball out of the ground. But he fell prey to the willy Adil Rashid to give England the ascendency in the titular contest.
Pakistan hit back with a counter-attacking partnership between Babar Azam and Shan Masood, adding 39 runs in just four overs. But the momentum switched sides yet again after Rashid got rid of the Pakistani skipper, bowling a magnificent wicket-maiden. Masood and Shadab Khan threatened with a brisk stand, but the latter’s dismissal triggered a lower-order collapse as Curran and co. restricted the Men in Green to a par total of 137 runs.
