T20 WC: England beat NZ, stay alive in semis race
England beat New Zealand in the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup Super 12 clash at The Gabba, Brisbane. The Three Lions successfully defended 179, with Chris Woakes and Sam Curran taking two wickets each. An incredible knock from Glenn Phillips went in vain. Earlier, Jos Buttler and Alex Hales scored half-centuries for England. England stay alive in the tournament after losing to Ireland.
How did the match pan out?
Hales and Buttler got off England to a flier after they elected to bat. England raced to 48/0 in the Powerplay. Both openers completed their half-centuries before the Kiwi bowlers bounced back. Lockie Ferguson took two wickets as England compiled 179/6 in 20 overs. Phillips' resounding knock inspired hope in the NZ camp, but others failed to deliver. NZ managed 159/6 in 20 overs.
11th half-century for Hales
Hales completed his half-century off 39 balls. He slammed his 11th half-century in T20I cricket. The right-handed batter now has 12 fifty-plus scores in the format (one century). However, Hales departed right after touching the 50-run mark. Spinner Mitchell Santner dismissed Hales as the latter got stumped. Hales smashed 52 off 40 balls (7 fours, 1 six).
Buttler smashes 73 off 47 balls
Buttler played second-fiddle while Hales tormented the New Zealand bowlers in the first 10 overs. However, the former broke the shackles once Hales departed. He whacked three fours in the 13th over bowled by Ferguson. Buttler completed his 18th T20I fifty off 35 balls. It was his 19th fifty-plus score in the format (one century). Buttler smashed 73 off 47 balls.
Most T20I runs for England
During the innings, Buttler became England's leading run-scorer in T20I cricket. He went past former England captain, Eoin Morgan (2,458), in terms of T20I runs. Buttler's next rival on the list is Pakistan's Mohammad Hafeez, who owns 2,514 runs in the format. Interestingly, Buttler and Morgan remain the batters to have scored over 2,000 T20I runs for the Three Lions.
100th T20I appearance for Buttler
Buttler featured in his 100th T20 International. He became just the second cricketer to play 100 T20Is for England after Morgan. The latter represented England in a total of 115 T20Is. Adil Rashid follows Buttler with 89 appearances in the format.
100 T20I sixes as a designated wicket-keeper
Buttler's knock against New Zealand was studded with 7 fours and 2 sixes. He finished with a strike rate of 155.32. As a result, Buttler became the first-ever player to have struck 100 sixes in T20I cricket as a designated wicket-keeper. He is miles ahead of South Africa's Quinton de Kock, who occupies the second spot on this list with 77 maximums.
A splendid knock from Phillips
Phillips and Kane Williamson added 91 runs after Devon Conway and Finn Allen departed early. Although Williamson got dismissed for 40, Phillips went on to smash a quickfire half-century. It was his ninth 50+ score in T20I cricket (two tons). Interestingly, Phillips was dropped by Moeen Ali on 1 at cover-point. The former went on to smash 62 off 36 balls.
