ENG vs AUS: 1st T20I – England steal victory as Australia implode
England clinched a thrilling two-run victory against Australia in the first T20I at The Rose Bowl, Southampton. The Australians were coasting towards the target at one point in time but a flurry of wickets brought England back in the game. The hosts managed to hold their nerve and steal a victory from the visitors. England now lead the three-match series by 1-0. Dawid Malan was named as the player of the match for his crucial knock off 66 runs from 43 balls. Here’s how the thriller unfolded.
Buttler goes berserk
Before this match, England captain Eoin Morgan had stated that he wanted his best white-ball batsmen to face as many balls as possible. In accordance, Jos Buttler opened the innings along with Jonny Bairstow. While Bairstow fell early, Buttler kept going. His attacking intent was evident from the start itself. In the second over delivered by Ashton Agar, the right-hander smashed two sixes and a four. He eventually fell for 44 of 29 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes.
There goes @josbuttler…
Trying to hit one onto his hotel balcony ??#ENGvAUS score/clips: https://t.co/JiMdxO5Nxv pic.twitter.com/FkNvEDVIDa
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) September 4, 2020
Malan keeps England alive
Sticking to what has been their successful game plan in the last few years, England went all out with one attacking batsman after another. However, the Australians took hold of the situation as they kept taking regular wickets. Malan anchored the innings while the rest of the side collapsed. Taking full control in the death overs, Malan then launched an attack by himself to take England towards a respectable total. Malan’s 66 helped England post 162/7 on the board in 20 overs.
Warner and Finch decimate England
England had had a lot of match practice but Australia were playing their first international match after a gap of almost six months. Although, it seemed to have no effect on the opening partnership of David Warner and captain Aaron Finch. The duo went about their natural game. They attacked the balls in their zone and kept rotating strike when they faced good deliveries. They put together 98 runs for the first wicket in 66 balls. When Australian captain fell for 46, Australia needed 65 runs from nine overs with nine wickets in hand.
England clinches the thriller
After the fall of Finch, Australia adopted the English approach of attacking batting and it produced similar results as Australian batting order also collapsed. From 98/0 at one stage, they found themselves at 137/5 in 17 overs. With Marcus Stoinis still at the crease, the Australian hopes were alive. The equation for the final over was 15 runs from six balls. With one six in the first three balls, it was down to nine runs to win from three balls.
An unbelievable fightback from our bowlers!#ENGvAUS pic.twitter.com/50INdbXowC
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) September 4, 2020
Two runs each on the next two balls meant that Australia needed to hit a boundary or a six off the last ball to produce a positive result. A low full toss from Tom Curran denied the visitors a boundary and England ended up winning the game by just two runs. These two teams will meet at the same venue on 6 September, Sunday for the second T20I.
